


Them.

by MGirl113



Category: Larry Stylinson - Fandom, One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - No One Direction, Alternate Universe - Normal High School, Alternate Universe - Teenagers, Bisexual Character, Bisexual Louis, Boys in Skirts, Bully Zayn, Bullying, F/F, F/M, Feminine Louis, Flower Child Louis, Gen, High School, High School Student Louis, Hormones, Insecure Louis, Louis in Makeup, Louis-centric, M/M, Multi, Nail Polish, New kid harry, Other, Pansexual Character, Pansexual Harry Styles, Peer Pressure, Protective Jay, Sassy Louis, Teen Angst, Teen Romance, Teenagers, Trans Character, Trans Male Character, Transgender, Transgender Louis, girly louis
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-01
Updated: 2017-12-24
Packaged: 2018-11-22 00:40:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 19
Words: 27,812
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11368974
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MGirl113/pseuds/MGirl113
Summary: "So let me guess," the small boy pursed their lips. "You're here to make fun of me, too?""What? Why would anyone make fun of you? You're quite beautiful."The boy sarcastically chuckled. "Very funny. What is it this time? My makeup?""You're makeup looks lovely.""My clothing?""That skirt outlines your figure perfectly.""My hair?""If only mine could be styled half as good as yours...""My nails?""Look like they were done by a professional.""Then what!? What is it?""The only thing I'm dissatisfied with is the fact that you aren't mine.""...What?"**********Lou Tomlinson. A transgender lad in their senior year of high school. Always bullied for their feminine personality and style. So they did their hair and makeup every morning. So they liked to wear skirts. So they used they/them pronouns. So what? That shouldn't make them any less human...At least that's what new kid, Harry Styles said the moment he laid eyes on Lou's perfect french tips.





	1. An Average Day

**Author's Note:**

> OMG SHE ACTUALLY DID IT! WHAT A SURPRISE!!

 

Lou abruptly woke up that morning to the sound of their iPhone playing Ride by Twenty One Pilots at full volume. Their long eyelashes fluttered open, as they sighed tiredly. They delicately tapped the screen with the tip of their French manicured nail to turn it off. 

 

Standing up from their floral patterned bedsheets, they strolled across the soft white carpet, soft step after step, making their way to a walk in closet. 

 

On one side of the shelf, there was a pair of well fitting skinny jeans and a loose Doncaster Rovers jersey. On the other side, there was a neatly folded cyan blue skirt and sleek white t-shirt with a graphic lily on the front. Of course, they chose the second outfit, pairing it with a pair of sparkly gold flats, a simple denim jacket, and a thin caramel colored belt around their curvy waist.

 

Heading over to the vanity mirror in their bathroom, they gazed at the reflection in front of them, brushing their teeth, washing their face, moisturizing, and nearly burning their temple with a curling wand. Next, they rinsed their hands with strawberry soap from bath and body works, and sprayed their favorite floral perfume on their body, preparing to put on their makeup.

 

First came the basics: primer, concealer, powder, and eyebrows, making sure they were curved and filled in perfectly. Next, they dusted their cheeks with a rosy pink blush, and defined them with bronzer and plenty of shimmery highlighter, as there's no such thing as too much highlighter. 

 

After that, they outlined their lips with a peach lip liner, and a coat of pale pink lipgloss overtop.

 

Lastly, they lined their eyes with a thin line of liquid eyeliner and a couple coats of their favorite covergirl black mascara.

 

Finally they were done. They batted their lashes and made a couple funny facial expressions in the mirror to make sure that their makeup was to their liking.

 

Satisfied, they grabbed their denim fabric backpack and phone, then headed downstairs for breakfast. Saying a quick greeting to their sisters, they grabbed a granola bar from the counter and dashed out the door, just as the bus arrived to take the students to school.

 

They thanked the bus driver, then their smile immediately vanished as they made their way, trudging to the back seat.

 

Instantly after setting down the backpack, Lou received a sharp smack to the side of the head. Graciously rubbing their temple, the looked to their left, only to see Zayn Malik and his crew smirking at him, chuckling smugly. His hazel eyes flashed with hatred.

 

"Well would you look at that," Niall Horan, Zayn's right hand man taunted him. "The little fag wants to sit with us."

 

"Fuck off, guys," Lou rolled his eyes.

 

"Oh my god! Check it out, Perrie!" Zayn called his girlfriend. The petite blonde took out her earphones and looked to her boyfriend. "She speaks!" She gave Lou a look of sympathy before looking back to her phone.

 

Lou groaned. "They. _They_ speak."

 

Niall quirked an eyebrow. "Last time I checked, there weren't two of you. I think the girly perfume is finally is getting to your _brain_." The rest laughed.

 

Lou felt tears coming to their eyes, but didn't let them fall. One, because that'd be fucking embarrassing. Two, because their mascara wasn't waterproof, and they weren't going to ruin their already perfect makeup. 

 

Instead, they plugged in their earphones and opened iTunes. Pressing play, the wonderful sounds of Twenty-One Pilots' song, Lovely, filled their ears. This one was especially a favorite because it made them wishful. If only Lou had someone to make them feel lovely, too. 

 

Soon enough, the bus came to an abrupt stop, and the rest of the students made their way off the vehicle, and into the school's front doors. Lou followed far behind, looking left and right for someone.

 

Eventually, that _someone_ showed up. It was Lou's best friend- scratch that- Lou's _only_ friend, Liam. Sure, it was kind of sad, but Liam was a great guy. Some people thought they were dating, but that wasn't the case. They just happened to be really good friends. Even if they weren't _together_ , knowing that they'd always be by each others side made their relationship even stronger. 

 

"How come you never come to school on the bus? It'd make the ride at least a _bit_ more bearable..." Lou pouted.

 

"I know, and I'm sorry. But I live too far away. I have to drive myself," Liam apologized.

 

"Yeah, whatever. It my mascara running?" Lou asked, trying to change the subject.

 

"Nah, you look fabulous as always, Mate."

 

Lou blushed. "Thanks, Li."

 

"Any time, Lou," Liam smiled. "It's getting late. We should head to class."

 

"Yeah," Lou agreed. And the two strolled off to their first class side by side.

 

********

 

_**BRRING!** _

 

"Everyone in your seats!" Mrs. Flack screamed. As the class started to settle into their seats, the teacher started to ramble on about some shit that no one cared about. Algebra or whatever.

 

Halfway through the lecture, Lou felt something hit the back of their head. They leaned down and picked up a crumpled up sticky note. Unfolding it, it read:

 

_**Nice makeup. It matches the pussy you're hiding under that skirt.** _

 

Lou's eyes widened, as their breath hitched. They shoved it into their backpack's front pocket to throw away later. They didn't notice the smug look on Zayn's face in the seat behind.

 

Trying to pay attention to the lesson, Lou tried their hardest to ignore the urge to cry. You'd think they'd be used to all the teasing and insults after so long, but still hurt just as much as it did 2 years ago, when they came out as transgender. Ever since then, the poor lad was never able to go through a single day without some sort of bullying. The words only came harsher. The hits only came stronger. 

 

_"Why can't thy just accept me for who I am?"_

They thought. _"Why does it matter what I wear? Or how I act? Or who I love? Or how-"_

 

"TOMLINSON!" Mrs. Flack chastised. "Are you even paying attention!?"

 

"Y-Yes, Miss," Lou stuttered, realizing that they had been called on to answer a question.

 

"Sure," she scowled. "Next time, it's a visit to Principal Cowell's office. Got it?"

 

"Y-Yes, Miss. Sorry," Lou apologized, ignoring the snickers from other students. "It won't happen again."

 

"Better not," she grumbled, turning back to the board. "Now. If the square root of _x_ equals 6 plus..."

 

Lou stopped paying attention from that moment on. They simple sulked in their chair, head in their hands. It was going to be a long day.

 

Long story short, it was. At lunch, someone tripped them, flipping their lunch tray to the ground. In P.E., they were violently slashed with lacrosse sticks. And lastly, in study hall, they were smacked in the face with Zayn's textbook, landing in their current situation: sitting in the nurse's office with a bloody nose.

 

"I think you're good, babe," Johanna, the school nurse said, tossing another bloody tissue into the trash bin.

 

"Thanks, Mum," Lou sighed. "I hate school sometimes."

 

"I know, baby. I know," their mother comforted them, aware of the merciless bullying going on in their class. "But you're so brave. And you've got Liam by your side all the way. I know you can get through it."

 

"Yeah. Okay," Lou sighed, unfazed. "I gotta get back to class." They stood up.

 

"Alright," she softly smiled. "See you later, honey."

 

"You too, Mum."

 

And with that, Lou headed off to finish off what was left of the school day. 

 

********

 

"Hey, Lou."

 

"Hey, Li," Lou greeted into their smartphone. "What's up?"

 

"Not much. Just finished an email to Mr. Cowell. Apparently, I'm supposed to be the new kid's 'buddy' tomorrow. I guess that's kind of interesting," Liam replied. Lou's brows raised at the words, 'new kid'

 

"New kid?" They asked. "What new kid?"

 

"Oh, that's right! You weren't here for the assembly!" Liam remembered. The period before was when Lou had to go see the nurse, explaining the absence. "Yeah, there's a new kid coming tomorrow. His name's Henry or summat."

 

"Great," Lou rolled their eyes. "Another person to make fun of me. Bloody joyful." 

 

"Hey, maybe he'll be different!" Liam suggested.

 

"I doubt it..." Lou sighed. "Anyways, I gotta go, but I'll text you later, kay?"

 

"M'kay. See ya later, Lou."

 

"You too. Bye!"

 

"Bye!"

 

After hanging up, Lou sighed solemnly. Another new kid. Fantastic. It would only be a matter of time before Zayn adopted him into his little cult. They definitely didn't look foreword to it.

 

Little did they know that this 'new kid' would completely change Lou's life for the better


	2. His Name's Jason Dean

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since I love y'all and I'm bored, here's chapter two! Sorry it's really short but I hope y'all like it!

"Harry! Sweetheart, get down here already! The bus will be here any minute!"

 

"I'm coming, Mum!" Harry called back, in the middle of shoving books into his bag, running a hand through his chocolate brown curls. Soon enough, he threw the bag over his shoulder, and tumbled down the stairs. As he ran to the door, his mother, Anne, stopped in front of him.

 

"Have fun, Harry," she smiled. Cupping his face in her hands, he gave a kiss on the cheek.

 

"Thanks, Mum. I will," he replied. And with a quick hug and peck to her cheek, he headed out the door, just in time for a bright yellow school bus to pull up to his house.

 

As he entered the vehicle, he tried not to be the focal point of attention for any other people on the bus. Luckily, they seemed to be completely focused on picking on some other kid. Harry kept walking, however, his heart sunk for whoever the poor kid being bullied was.

 

As a force of habit, Harry headed for the back of the bus. There was only one empty seat left, so he took it. Not knowing what to do, he looked around. He saw tons of rowdy students bickering and laughing. It seemed clear that they all had their own made up friend groups. 

 

 _"Great. Off to a good start,"_ he thought. _"I guess that's what happens when you start a month into the school year..."_

 

Instead of even attempting to socialize, Harry typed in the password to his iPhone, opening iTunes. He simply decided on Heathens by Twenty One Pilots. A favorite of his. Plugging in his earbuds, Harry zoned out, focusing solely on the hauntingly soothing music filling his ears and clouding his mind. Seemingly only seconds went by before the bus came to an abrupt stop, signaling that he had arrived at his new school campus.

 

 _"Well,"_ he thought. _"Let's do this thing."_

 

Gulping nervously, he headed in. Going straight to the office, he started off. He had been ordered to head to the front office first thing in the morning to meet up with his 'buddy' for the day.

 

Arriving to what he believed to be the front desk, he saw a boy, about his age, smiling at him. The lad was pretty tall, with brown eyes. His short, chocolate colored hair was buzzed on the sides, and swept back on the top. His smile was kind and welcoming.

 

"Hey, I'm Liam," the boy greeted him, putting his hand out to shake. "Harry, right?"

 

"Yeah. Nice to meet you," Harry shook his hand. "Are you my 'buddy' for the day?"

 

"Yep," Liam replied, popping the 'p'.

 

"Cool," Harry grinned. Liam seemed very friendly. Thank God, he wouldn't have to be stuck with some asshole for the whole day.

 

"I think you'll like it here," Liam said. "The people are all relatively friendly. Worst case scenario, you end up sitting with me and my friend at lunch every day."

 

"Sounds alright to me," Harry smiled. The two laughed, before heading off to their first class.

 

*******

 

"Everyone here is so friendly," Harry grinned, balancing the food on his lunch tray.

 

Liam nodded. "Yeah. You just gotta hang with the right people," he said, setting his tray down on the lunchroom table. "Especially my friend Lou. The _best_. I'm excited for you two to meet!"

 

Harry quirked an eyebrow. "Really? What's she like?"

 

Liam chuckled. "Actually, Harry...em, Lou's a boy. It's understandable though, since the name Lou is gender-neutral."

 

He blushed. "Oh, sorry."

 

Liam patted Harry's hand in reassurance. "No biggie. I'll fill you in on what Lou's like. I'm sure you two will get along greatly!"

 

Harry smiled. "Sure."

 

Liam told Harry all about Lou. He told about his personality, hobbies, and musical interest. And from what he said, Harry was sure that they'd become good friends. They both loved TØP, so that was definitely a pro! However, he hadn't been filled in on what Lou looked like, so he didn't know what to look for.

 

Luckily, Liam made that much easier.

 

Just then, he waved gesturing to someone behind Harry. "Hey! There you are, you little bitch!"

 

"Haha. Hello to you, too, Li," a soft voice said from behind. Harry turned around, and his eyes immediately widened.

 

There, standing in front of him was the most beautiful being Harry had ever laid eyes on. 

 

The boy was nothing like anyone he'd ever seen before. He was quite short, which Liam had not informed him on. It was cute. But it was the other aspects of his appearance that had Harry's mouth agape. 

 

First, he didn't dress like the stereotypical high schooler. No. This boy was wearing a pair of white, slim fitting jeggings that perfectly showed off his large, roundly sculpted, sexy ass. He also wore a black and red baseball tee that was rolled up at the sleeves, showing off a delicate silvery charm bracelet. His outfit was accompanied with some black sparkly flats. His dark brown locks swept to the side. But what stunned Harry the most was his face. 

 

The boy's face was nothing short of perfection. Sharp cheekbones gave him a natural contour. Thin lips coated in a vibrant cherry red lipstick. With elegantly rounded eyebrows and cheeks dusted with pale pink blush. Elongated eyelashes coated in black mascara brought out his stunningly beautiful blue eyes.

 

From the split second that Harry had laid eyes on him, he knew that this boy was special.

 

"So what's going o-" the boy stopped dead in their tracks.

 

The two met eye contact for the first time. His bright cerulean eyes met Harry's deep emerald ones. Blue met green. All was right in the world.

 

It was as if time stood still. 

 

"Hi!" 

 

"Hi!"

 

They both said at the same time, awkwardly. The mystery boy seemed to giggle nervously.

 

"O-Oops," he stuttered, his hands folded in front of his body. Harry had just not noticed the clean French manicure the boy had. It looked quite beautiful.

 

"H-Hi," Harry replied. "What's your name?"

 

"L-Lou. Lou Tomlinson. And you?" Lou asked.

 

"Harry Styles," he smiled. "So you're the infamous Lou, huh?"

 

Lou seemed confused. "Yeah, that's me... Why do you ask?" 

 

"I've heard quite a bit about you. You seem very unique compared to others in our school."

 

"Really?" Lou seemed a bit skeptical. "And what exactly have you been told, may I ask?"

 

"Quite a bit," Harry replied. "You're quite the character from what I've heard."

 

It was then that Lou's face turned cold, as if he were deeply offended. His eyebrows creased together in anger. He pulled his hand back, and-

 

_**SMACK!** _

 

Harry stumbled backwards, holding a hand to the red mark on his face where Lou had smacked him. Hard.

 

Lou was seething with anger and irritation. "I knew it! You're just like the rest of them! Of course! Fuck you!" Then, he ran away, bolting.

 

Harry shook his head back and forth in disbelief. "What!?" He turned to Liam, who had an apologetic expression on his face. "What did I do!? Did I say something? Why was he so upset?"

 

"Oh, Harry," Liam comforted him. "You didn't do anything wrong. It's just...Lou's a bit insecure about their social image is all. I'll talk to them later, okay? We'll get it all sorted out."

 

Harry nodded, but didn't say what he was thinking. Why would such a beautiful human being be insecure? As far as Harry had seen, he didn't spy a single flaw on Lou's figure. Lou was...perfect.

 

"No," Harry said. Liam looked confused, but didn't say anything. "Don't talk to him. I will."

 

Liam seemed a bit surprised, raising his brows. "Really? You will?"

 

"Yes," Harry replied, very sure of himself. "I need to see him again."

 

"If you say so..." Liam shrugged. "C'mon, Lou probably needs a bit of time to cool down. Why don't we finish up our lunches, yeah?"

 

Harry nodded, but the thing was, he didn't want to finish lunch. Now he was distracted. He couldn't focus on anything else. His mind continuously wandered to the beautiful student with the French tips.

 

Harry had to see Lou again.


	3. I Just Wanna Talk

 

 

 

 

 

You'd think that it would be easy for Harry to find Lou again, considering it was a relatively small school...but no. It proved to be extremely difficult. 

 

Ever time Harry'd catch a glimpse of Lou, he'd blink, then he'd be gone. Honestly, turning ever hallway and corner trying to find the lad was exhausting. One, because he'd been trying so hard to find Lou all day. Second, because Harry's barely gotten any sleep last night because he'd been plagued with endless thoughts of the boy with French tips. He kept falling asleep in class, and as a result, getting yelled at by all his new teachers.

 

God, how he wanted Lou to be his. 

 

Harry could only fantasize what'd it be like to wake up next to Lou every morning. Stroking his soft, feathery brown locks. Staring at his stunning blue eyes full of wonder, and his long eyelashes. Cupping his soft cheek with his hand, and tasting Lou's soft pink lips on h-

 

"Harry!" Mr. Winston exclaimed, waking Harry from his daydreams. "Is there something you'd like to say, sir?"

 

"N-No. Sorry," Harry apologized.

 

The teacher nodded, before turning back to the board, as he taught about some ancient European dictator. (A.N  coincidence? ;D) And as soon as he did, Harry went back to his thoughts. 

 

It was strange. Harry and Lou had only formally known each other for about a second or two. And yet, Harry himself oddly drawn to this boy. Why? He barely knew anything about him!

 

Maybe...maybe it was because Lou was different. Lou wasn't like any of the other people in their school. In fact, he wasn't like any human being Harry's ever met in his entire lifetime!

 

Lou was different. From the way he rocked his feminine clothing on his tiny frame, to his flawless makeup. From his perfectly styled hair all the way down to his vintage flats with the detailed ribbon accessories.

 

He just wasn't like other guys. Maybe he was gay or something... but it wasn't polite if Harry to assume. Though he'd like to find out. Harry himself just happened to be as yellow, pink, and blue as an eyeshadow palette from Claire's. In other words, he was quite the pansexual. So if Lou just happened to not be straight, that'd be quite fortunate. 

 

BRINGG!

 

So with a call of the bell signaling the end of the period, Harry rushed out of the classroom, determined to get Lou alone.

 

Luck seemed to be on his side for the time being, because Harry spied Lou walking out of Mr. Walsh's classroom.

 

In a sudden spur of the moment, Harry rushed up to Lou in a split second.

 

"W-Wha? What are you-" Lou didn't have time to finish. He gasped at Harry grabbed his wrist and stubbornly pulled him into the restroom, locking the stall's door behind him. 

 

Lou looked at him like he was insane. "What the hell!? Are you crazy? What are you doing?"

 

"I need to talk to you," Harry replied, a dead serious look on his face.

 

"Well, this certainly isn't the way to do it," Lou pursed his lips sassily. "Maybe a simple, 'Could I have a quick word' would be nice. But _no_ -"

 

"Lou. We need to talk, alright?" He persisted.

 

Lou quirked his eyebrows. "Wait a second... you're that new kid that Liam was with yesterday! At lunch!"

 

"Yeah. That's me."

 

"I knew it. So? What did they say to you?" Lou asked irritably.

 

"What? Who?" Harry asked confusedly.

 

"Zayn! Niall! And their little army! They're always talking shit about me! What did they say?" Lou yelled.

 

"I have no idea who you're talking about! The only person who talked about you was Liam! And he only said nice things!"

 

"Yeah, sure," Lou rolled his eyes.

 

"It's true! And you know what I said? I said, 'Wow. Lou sounds really cool. Can't wait to meet him!' My words exactly!"

 

" _Them_! Can't wait to meet them! Goddamnit, why does nobody acknowledge that!?" Lou complained.

 

"I'm sorry. I didn't know you went by those pronouns!" Harry apologized.

 

"Yeah. Whatever."

 

"I said I was sorry!"

 

"It's not like you actually meant it," Lou glared. Their eyes fell sadly. "Can you just do it already?" They whined.

 

"Huh? Do what?"

 

Lou rolled their eyes, putting a hand on their hip.  "Of course..." they muttered.

 

"What?" Harry asked confusedly.

 

"So let me guess," the smol boy licked their lips, giving the other lad a bitchface. "You're here to make fun of me, too. Aren't you?"

 

"What? Why would anyone make fun of you? You're quite beautiful."

 

The boy sarcastically chuckled. "Very funny. What is it this time? My makeup?"

 

"Your makeup looks lovely."

 

Not believing their ears, Lou asked, "My clothing?"

 

"Your shirt outlines your figure perfectly."

 

"My hair?"

 

"If only mine could styled half as good as yours..."

 

"My nails?"

 

"Look like they were done by a professional."

 

"Then what!? What is it?" They screamed.

 

"The only thing I'm dissatisfied with is the fact that you're not mine."

 

"...What?" Lou whispered.

 

"Lou. I think I really like you," Harry replied. Lou didn't answer. And it was at this time that Harry could really take in how beautiful they were.

 

Lou's hair was styled into a quiff. They had dark, winged eyeliner and mascara. Their cheekbones were contoured perfectly, and their lips shaped with a rosy lip stain. Lou really was gorgeous.

 

"I don't believe you," Lou replied in disbelief.

 

"What? Why not?" Harry asked with a frown.

 

"How could anyone love me? And you? We just fucking met! It doesn't make any sense! You're just trying to mess with me, aren't you!" Lou accused.

 

"W-What? No! That's not-"

 

"You just want to act all sweet! Gain my trust so you can throw me away later! God, you're just like everyone else!" They screamed.

 

"Lou, that's not what I'm trying to do!"

 

"Oh, sure! That's what they all say," Lou's voice broke. It was clear that they had been hurt in the past. Harry could tell.

 

"Lou, it's okay to cry..." Harry comforted with a soft voice.

 

"No!" Lou retaliated. "I _refuse_ to cry right now! I worked so hard on my makeup today and I'm NOTgoing to ruin it!" They exclaimed, fanning their hands and blinking furiously.

 

Harry would've found it funny if not for the current situation.

 

"Please, just leave me alone," Lou whimpered.

 

"Lou-"

 

"Did you not hear me!? I SAID LEAVE ME ALONE!"

 

"Lou, wait!" Harry called after them , but they were already gone.

 

He sighed.

 

Harry trudged back to the hallway with a defeated frown. 

 

Something was wrong. Harry could sense it.

 

But what? What happened with Lou?

 

It was probably serious, whatever it was...

 

And Harry was determined to find out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can y'all see the images at the beginning of each chapter? If not, I'm posting them on my Insta: Larryoflove1828


	4. He Started It!

* * *

 

 

"Mister Tomlinson," Mr. Cowell, the principal, said. "Mind explaining what happened?"

 

Lou sneered. "A lot..." They carelessly picked at the bandaid on their left arm.

 

"Would you care to go into detail?" Mr. Cowell pressed on, lowering his glasses.

 

"Not really," Lou rolled their eyes. "I really don't think I need to be here, to be honest."

 

"I know you feel that way, but I'd very much appreciate it if you told me why you're here in the first place," Mr. Cowell tried not to raise his voice. "I don't want to make your _punishment_ any worse than is necessary."

 

Lou pouted his lips out irritably. "Fine. I'll tell you."

 

The older man seemed satisfied with that answer. "Go on."

 

"Whatever. Here's what happened..."

 

********

 

"Lou, wait!"

 

Lou didn't wait. They didn't look back. They just ran.

 

And they ran.

 

Until-

 

"Oomph!"

 

"Ow!"

 

Lou stumbled back from the impact. Flickering their eyelids, they focused on who they'd bumped into...

 

"WATCH WHERE YOU'RE GOING, BITCHFACE!" Zayn screamed.

 

 _Shit_.

 

"I-I'm sorry," Lou pleaded. "It was an accident-"

 

"You think you're so funny," Zayn sneered. "It's all just hilarious! You act stupid. As if you _don't_ know what happens when you get in my way."

 

With that, Lou gasped in pain as Zayn's fist collided with their cheek. They stumbled backwards, falling to the floor.

 

"OW!" Lou hissed. "The fuck!? I said I was sorry!"

 

"As if I'm going to take any word from a faggot like you!"

 

"I am not a fag!" Lou retaliated, stumbling to their feet. "You're just an asshole that can't accept me!" They screamed, pointing a menacing finger.

 

"What the hell did you just say to me!?" Zayn barked. "Now you're _really_ gonna get it," he threatened, taking a step foreword.

 

"I'd like to see you try!" Lou sure as hell wasn't in the mood for a fight, but they weren't gonna let Zayn trample over them either. Not today.

 

And with that, both lunged for each other, throwing punches and kicks, causing everyone in the hall to stop and stare. Some were mortified. Others were entertained.

 

"YOU BITCH! GET YOUR GAY HANDS OFF OF ME!"

 

"YOURS WERE ON ME FIRST, IDIOT!"

 

"I'M NOT GAY! I'M NOT A FUCKING SIN LIKE YOU!"

 

"A _SIN_ LIKE ME!? OH, FUCK THAT'S IT YOU _DICK!"_

 

"FUCKING GET OFF OF ME, FAGGOT!"

 

"YOU CALL ME A FAGGOT ONE MORE TIME AND I _SWEAR!"_

 

"TOMLINSON, MALIK, MY OFFICE!" 

 

Lou and Zayn turned their heads to see Principal Cowell scowling at them in disappointment. 

 

"Mr. Cowell, I-"

 

"It wasn't my-"

 

"My office, boys," he repeated. "Now," the older man commanded sternly.

 

The two heated lads miserably trudged off to his office, awaiting the verbal punishment that was sure to come.

 

********

 

"I see..." the principal nodded after hearing Lou's side of the story. "Well, the consequence for picking a fight, and in the _middle of the hallway_ as well-"

 

"Zayn was the one _started_ the fight!" Lou exclaimed angrily. "He hates me! Plus, he punched me first! I didn't do anything!"

 

"You fought back."

 

"What did you expect me to do!? Just stand there while he beat me to death!?" They retorted.

 

"Maybe don't resort to violence and use your _words_ -"

 

"HE CALLED ME A FAG!" Lou screamed in rage, standing up from their seat. "AND YOU'RE MAD AT _ME_ OF ALL PEOPLE!!?"

 

"Do _not_ raise your voice at me, Tomlinson!" The authorities figure slammed his fist on the table. "Now sit down."

 

Lou huffed in anger. "Whatever. It's not like you would've done anything about it anyways..." they muttered.

 

"I don't appreciate that _tone_ , young man."

 

"Well, I'm sorry you can't take myattitude but I'm kind of pissed right now!" They snapped.

 

"I will not tolerate that kind of language towards the staff! Two weeks of detention and that's final!" He said with a booming voice.

 

"Fine! Can I please go now?" Lou complained. They were used to punishment all the time. The staff hated them with a passion.

 

Mr. Cowell sighed irritably. "Yes. You may leave."

 

"Thank you," Lou said, storming out of the room with a grim disposition.

 

"Close the door on your way out!" They heard him call from behind. They slammed the heavy door shut with a bang.

 

For the love of God, why couldn't they catch a break today?

 

_**BRING!!** _

 

Great. They were already late for another class. Well, nothing they could do about it now. What was the point.

 

Lou leaned back, sliding down the wall behind them to their knees and sitting down.

 

They sighed. 

 

"Why does everyone hate me!!?" They exclaimed in frustration, feeling tears start to come to their eyes.

 

"...I don't hate you." 

 

A voice startled Lou out of their space. They looked up to see Harry staring at them with apologetic eyes.

 

"The hell do you want?" Lou sniffed, trying to hide the fact that they might've been crying.

 

"I'm just sorry about what happened," Harry sat down next to them. 

 

"Shut up," Louis snapped. "That kind of shit happens all the time. I'm used to it."

 

"So Zayn beats you up often?" Harry asked carefully. 

 

Lou nodded emotionlessly, as if it was nothing.

 

"Oh. I-I'm sorry..."

 

"Shut up! I don't _want_ your sympathy!" They hissed, their hands balled up in fists.

 

"Fine! I won't _give_ you my sympathy! But at least talk to me!" Harry frowned sourly.

 

"Why do you want me to talk to you? What, do you think that'll make me nicer?"

 

"I'm sure you're really nice," Harry said softer. The sudden way he changed his voice took Lou by surprise, leading Harry to continue, "You know, I'm no trying to annoy you, I promise. I just wanna get to know you. I-I don't want to hurt you."

 

Lou scoffed. "Please, who are you, Superman? Where were you half an hour ago when I was getting beat up, huh!?"

 

"I was the one who got the _principal_ , idiot!" Harry exclaimed. "If I hadn't you might've gotten even more hurt!"

 

"I was handling fine on my own, mind you," Lou crossed their arms stubbornly. "Just because I look like a girl doesn't mean I'm a damsel in distress."

 

"I never said you were," Harry replied. "And a thank you would be nice.."

 

"Thank you for what? Getting me in trouble with the principal?" They threw up the arms in fury. "Yeah, I'm real grateful!"

 

"Well what was I supposed to do!?"

 

"Oh, I don't know! Maybe try to break up the fight!!?"

 

"You said you didn't _want_ to be saved!"

 

"UGH, WHATEVER!" Lou screamed in annoyance. "I've had enough of everyone. I'm just gonna go home..."

 

"Lou, wait a second!-"

 

"No! Just stop talking to me! I just wanna be alone right now!"

 

Harry sighed, watching Lou run away once again.

 

********

 

"UGHH! I can't even...just- _ugh!"_

 

"I know, I know...he's _sooo_ annoying."

 

"I'm serious, Liam!" Lou whined into their phone. "He just pisses my off so much! I-I don't know why! He's always just so awkward around me and I hate it."

 

"He's new. Give him a break," Liam said on the other line. 

 

"I know, I know," Lou sighed. "But still. Why won't he just leave me alone?"

 

"I don't know," Liam shrugged. "Maybe he fancies you."

 

"Fancies me?" Lou asked with a scoff. "Please, Li. We just met, like, a week ago. There's no way he would like me..."

 

"You never know," Liam smirked. "Maybe he does like you."

 

"Well, he's got a funny way of showing it. I mean, that would explain why he's fuckingeverywhere. Like, seriously!" Lou exclaimed. "Everywhere I turn, he's always there! That one day at lunch, when he pulled me aside to talk, after the fight outside the principal's office," they listed on their fingers. "He's like obsessed with me or something!"

 

"Well, I still think you should give him a chonce..." Liam suggested.

 

"I don't know..." Lou frowned. "I just don't want a repeat of last time."

 

"Harry's different. He's gotta be," Liam defended him new friend. "I've gotten to know him, and I think he's pretty nice. Again, just give him a shot!" He pleaded. "Haz is a good guy."

 

"Haz? What, you guys are on nickname terms now?" Lou raised an eyebrow.

 

"Yeah, I guess. What? Are you jealous?"

 

"Pff. No," Lou rolled their eyes. "Anyways, what should I do?"

 

"Just be decent to him and maybe he'll come 'round."

 

Lou sighed. "Maybe. Let's just see what happens on Monday."

 

"Okay," Liam said. "Hey, my mum's calling me. I'll text you later, kay?"

 

"Alright. Bye, Li."

 

"Bye!" Liam pressed the 'end call' button, starting dial another number. On the third ring, they picked up.

 

"H'lo? Liam?"

 

"Harry! Hey mate," Liam greeted. "What's up?"

 

"Not much. How bout you?"

 

"Just got done talking to Lou," Liam smirked, hearing Harry's voice hitch from the other line.

 

"Y-You talked to Lou?" Harry asked. Liam could practically hear the blush creeping onto the curly lad's cheeks.

 

"Mhmm," Liam hummed. "About you."

 

Harry choked. "W-WHAT!? What did you say!?"

 

Liam chuckled. "Relax, H. All I said was that they should give you a chance.

 

Harry sighed. "God, I wish they would...I-I think I really like them."

 

"I know," Liam smiled softly, even though Harry couldn't see. "Hey, maybe you should talk to them."

 

"Should I? Are you sure?" Harry asked with uncertainty. "It seems like whenever I try to start a conversation with them I just make things worse."

 

"Well that's probably just because you catch them off guard all the time," he shrugged.

 

"Wow, thanks."

 

"No, not like that! I mean," Liam struggled for words. "Um...Well, what classes do you guys have together?"

 

"Uh...I'll have to check later. I think just PE and chemistry."

 

"Perfect..." Liam smirked.

 

"Huh?"

 

"Oh, nothing," he covered up. "Hey, sorry. My mum's calling me. I'll talk to you later, okay?"

 

"Okay. See ya, Liam."

 

"Bye Haz."

 

"Bye."

 

Click.

 

Okay, so maybe that wasn't the best coverup. Whatever. They didn't seem too suspicious. 

 

See, Liam had a plan. Ever since Harry had gushed out his feelings for Lou, he couldn't help but think that they'd make a cute couple. However, it wasn't gonna happen naturally any time soon. So he figured he'd just have to give them a little push in the right direction.

 

Starting on Monday...

 


	5. Playing Matchmaker

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OMFG IM SO FUCKING SORRY!!! I THOUGHT I HAD POSTED IT BUT IT WAS STILL IN DRAFTS FML

 

"TOMLINSON! BLOCK! FASTER! DODGE, DODGE, DODGE! RUN!"

"EXCUSE ME, SIR! BUT THESE LEGS WERE NOT MADE FOR RUNNING!" Lou shouted back at the gym teacher, almost sliding across the floor from not looking where they were going. A couple random students giggled in amusement. Lou shot hateful glares at them.

"TOMLINSON!" Coach Higgins chastised. "FORWARD! ON THE LEFT! GET YOUR ARSE OVER TO THAT GOAL BASKET RIGHT NOW! HE'S ABOUT TO MAKE A FIVE HOLE IN FIFTEEN!"

"WHAT SPORT ARE WE EVEN PLAYING!?" They asked, stopping in the middle of the field.

"FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT! SLIIIIIIIIIIDE!"

"You didn't answer my que-AUGH!" Lou was forcefully pushed to the ground by Zayn.

"Watch out, Missy," he smirked, before running off after the ball.

"TOMLINSON! THIRD HAND TACKLING IS ILLEGAL!" TO THE SHOWERS! NOW!" He screamed. Lou thought it was a wonder how he didn't contract laryngitis considering how much he yelled.  
  
"Ugh, fine," Lou groaned. They'd rolled their eyes, starting to jog off to the locker room. Not paying attention to the devilish glint in Liam's eyes.

He smirked. _"Now's my chance,"_ he thought.

He sneakily crept up behind Harry, who wasn't really paying attention to the game at all. Once he was near enough, making sure he didn't see, he shoved the lanky brunette towards Lou's direction.

The tall lad stumbled a couple feet before bumping chests with Lou, colliding face to face. They stared at each other with wide, confused eyes.

"W-Wha..?" Lou stuttered.

"I-I..."

It seemed like years went by, Lou peering into Harry's green eyes in shock. And Harry staring into Lou'd captivating eyes like they were his lifeline.

He took this short moment to examine Lou's choice of makeup for today. Soft pink lipgloss, long lashes coated in mascara. Cheeks dusted with sweetheart pink blush and highlighter. Their fringe was perfectly styled, ending in a cute curl at the tip of their bangs. Simple but affective. Very affective-

Harry didn't get to finish that thought however, because Lou forcefully pushed him away from them with a disgusted grimace on their face, their cheeks hot red. Whether it was from embarrassment or anger, he couldn't tell.

"The fuck? What exactly were you trying to achieve, pervert!?" They accused.

"I-I'm sorry, Lou. It was an accident, I promise!" Harry threw his hands up in defense. "I-Sorry."

Expecting a full on verbal attack from them, Harry was surprised when Lou's complexion softened, their lips even curving into a timid smile.

"I-It's okay. Just be careful, Lou said with a surprisingly calm voice. "Don't want you hitting that pretty head of yours, now would we?"

"I-I-Yeah. I mean, um...okay," Harry stammered, watching helplessly confused as Lou walked off, swinging their hips.

"What the..." he muttered under his breath. "That was kinda weird."

He decided to brush it off. Maybe it was nothing.

Harry ran towards the ball once again, failing to notice the huge grin on Liam's face from behind.

********

Lou strolled into their chemistry class, settling down in their usual spot next to Liam. To be honest, he was the only one they could stand to be one on one with in this class. Or any classes.

They tapped their nails on the desktop, impatiently waiting for Liam to arrive. The last thing they wanted was for some dickhead to sit down next to them.

Five minutes went by, and still no sign of Liam. It was getting late. And Liam was never late for a class. They started to worry, biting their lip nervously.

"Ah, finally you decide to show up!" The new science teacher Mrs. Scherzinger said jokingly.

Lou looked up hopefully, expecting to see Liam walk through the door, but instead of straight, short hair, they saw a head full of brown curls.

"Sorry," Harry blushed. "Won't happen again."

"Oh, it's quite alright," she smiled. "Why don't you take a seat next to Lou. It's the only one left," she suggested, gesturing towards the empty seat next to Lou.

 _"Only one left?"_ They thought. Lou quirked an eyebrow confusedly, looking around. _"But what about Liam-"_

Their thought process was cut short when their eyes landed on the desk pair in the right _behind_ them in the classroom, consisting of that girl Cheryl and... _Liam!?_

"Liam!?" Lou whisper-yelled through clenched teeth. "What are you doing!?"

Liam smirked. "Remember, Lou. Be nice."

Lou muttered something incomprehensible under their breath in response.

Harry looked a bit uneasy, but sat down anyways, glancing timidly at Lou, who was death glaring at Liam.

"Is there going to be a problem?" The teacher asked with a confused frown on her face, making the two lads in the front turn to her with full attention.

"Oh! N-No," the said at the same time.

She chuckled. "Alright. You behave, you two," she winked before turning to the board, writing out her last name.

"Hello, everyone. My name is Mrs. Scherzinger. I'm new here because the old teacher decided to stop working here at the last minute. However, I'm very excited to start working with you all!" She smiled kindly.

"Now, let me get a piece of paper, because I need to write down your lab partners," she said, digging around in her desk. When she rose her head, she realized that most students were giving each other knowing glances on why they wanted to choose.

She chuckled. "Sorry, kids. But you don't get to choose your partners," she admitted, noticing as everyone sighed in disappointment. "Sorry, I do a different system for partnering. Basically, whoever you're sitting next to currently is who you will be working and sitting with for the rest of the semester!"

Most kids were happy, seeing as they were already sitting next to their friends. However, at this, Lou visibly paled. They snapped their head around at Liam.

"Did you know about this!!?" They screeched. Liam shrugged. Lou groaned in agitation. "Bitch! You dick, I just- Great. Fucking fantastic."

"Wow, you sure love to swear," Harry joked light-heartedly. "You're like a sailor."

Lou glared at him with daggers in their eyes.

"S-Sorry," Harry retreated back into his seat. "Never mind..."

They rolled their eyes, giving their attention back to the teacher, who was obliviously writing down the seating chart.

"Okay! So for your first chemistry lab, here's your worksheet. Take vile B from the cabinet behind you and..."

Lou zoned out. They mindlessly made their way through the instructions, completely spacing out and picking up nothing.

They sighed into their fist, before turning to Harry. Somehow he had already managed to set everything up with an enthusiastic grin.

"Wow, you're eager," Lou rolled their eyes sarcastically.

Harry's face dropped. "It's not like you were gonna help anyways," he muttered.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing. Let's just get started," Harry said in a monotone voice.

"Whatever," Lou brushed it off annoyedly. "Let's just get started."

So, the project went on just as normal. A couple accidental touches and brushing s against each other and it went fine.

At least, until Harry knocked over a beaker onto Lou's lap.

"Ah! What the fuck!?" Lou exclaimed, jumping back. Their jeans were now drenched. “These were designer!” They whined.

  
“Oh my God! I-I'm so sorry!” Harry apologized frantically. “It was an accident! I swear!”

“Yeah, I'm sure! You-“ Lou was cut off by the laughter of the entire class.

Everyone. They were pointing, taking pictures, staring, the works. Lou’s face flushed bright red with embarrassment.

“Look, everyone!” Zayn scoffed. “She's wet for Harry! You fucking transgender slut!” Everyone laughed.

Transgender slut. Lou’s stomach churned. They felt sick. Right as they were about to turn and run away, they let a hand on their shoulder.

“Lou,” Harry whispered solemnly. “Don't listen to them-“

“No.”

Lou stepped their hand away coldly. “Don't fucking talk to me. I'm tired of your bullshit,” they hissed, tears welling up in their eyes. “Don't- Just leave me alone.” And with that, they ran out of the classroom.

“Lou, wait!” Harry ran after them.

Liam watched him boot out, sighing in defeat.

_“This isn't working. If anything, I'm just making things worse,” he thought disappointedly. “Okay. I have one last thing. Hopefully it will work…”_

_“I don't know what'll happen if it doesn't…”_


	6. The Lady and The Tramp

"Lou, let's hang out," Liam said, shutting the car door closed.

Lou quirked their eyebrow. "Huh?" They asked, fumbling around with their wallet.

"Let's hang out," Liam repeated, as they made their way across the parking lot on the way to the mall. Lou's idea of course. "I feel like we haven't in forever."

"Excuse me, but then what is this?" Lou said jokingly. "Do trips to Sephora not count as hanging out?"

"I mean, sure. But we don't really talk, and I just wanna have a sit down conversation, you know?" Liam suggested.

"Sounds good," Lou shrugged. "What'd you have in mind?"

"Maybe a lunch out or summat?"

"Sounds good," Lou nodded. "After school?"

"Yeah," Liam smiled. "How do you feel about that new Italian restaurant downtown? We can make a reservation and check it out on Friday."

"Nice! You know I love Italian,"Lou winked. They turned to the front entrance of the mall and squealed. "Liam they've got a sail on lip liner! C'mon!" They exclaimed, tugging him along.

"Okay, okay! I'm coming!" Liam laughed, being dragged off to the nearest makeup store.

"Liam, look!" Lou jumped excitedly. "This Urban Decay palette is to die for! I don't even think I have this one!"

"Uh huh," Liam rolled his eyes playfully. "You should get it. You only have fifteen just like it."

Lou hit him on the shoulder playfully. "I'm serious! If you're not gonna help then  why are you here?" They pouted.

"It's not like you really gave me a choice," he chuckled. "You basically dragged me in here!"

"Well it's not like you said anything," Lou replied sassily. "Now honestly. Should I get it?"

"Sure," Liam replied with a shrug. "Whatever you want."

"That's nice. I think I'm gonna get it," Lou smiled. "C'mon, let's go to checkout. Before the line gets too long."

"We're literally the only people here!" Liam said confusedly as Lou grabbed his wrist. 

"I know! People might start coming in any second, let's go!" They exclaimed. 

Liam rolled his eyes playfully. "You're ridiculous."

"I know," Lou grinned.

********

"Hey," Liam greeted into his phone.

"Hi," Harry replied. "What's up?"

"I was just thinking," he said. "That we should hang out."

Harry quirked an eyebrow. Even though he knew Lima couldn't see. "Don't you have a girlfriend?"

"Not like that kind of hanging out," Lima rolled his eyes. "Besides. Cheryl and I are just friends right now."

"Uh huh. Sure," Harry hummed in response sarcastically. "Anyways, what'd you have in mind? Like lunch or something?"

"Sure," Liam replied. "How bout that new Italian restaurant down the street?"

"Yeah, I think you know what you're talking about," Harry shrugged. "Sounds good. When? Does Thursday work?"

"Nah, mate. I'm only free on Friday," Liam sighed. "Maybe after school that day? Well just meet there at like 5:30?"

"Sounds good," Harry smiled. "See you Friday then!"

"You too. Bye!"

"Bye!"

********

Finally, Friday afternoon had come. Lou wore a simple plain white t-shirt and skinny jeans. They didn't like to dress up much when they were in public for fear of being called out. Thin black eyeliner with a subtle pointed wing. Their lower lash line was filled in dark purple giving them an irresistible sultry look. Perfectly arched eyebrows complimented their sharply contoured cheekbones defined with bronzer and a deep, plum colored blush. And lastly, their thin lips were covered in a nude purplish- pink lip stain. They tapped the toe of their heal impatiently, waiting outside of the restaurant that they and Liam had planned to meet at. It had been at least 6 minutes. Yes, they had been counting. Because they absolutely hate waiting on people.

7 minutes. Oh hell to the no.

"Fuck, that's it," Lou sighed in frustration. They stomped up angrily to the host, ignoring the aggravated looks from the people they had pushed aside.

"Can I help you, sir?" The host asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Actually, yes. I have a reservation here for two at 5:30 under Liam?" Lou told him. "But he hasn't showed yet. Can I just get seated and wait for him inside the restaurant?"

The older man pinched his eyebrows confusedly. "That's funny..." he mumbled, flipping through the book in front of him.

"What?" Lou asked, quirking their eyebrow skeptically.

After staring at the book for what seemed like forever, he straightened his glasses and looked to Lou. "It seems that someone is already here on the same reservation. He's at the table now. Is this who you're supposedly waiting for?"

Lou's eyes widened dramatically. "W-What!!?" They stammered. "Are you sure?"

He nodded. "Yes."

"I-duh...What did he look like?" They asked, still flustered.

"Pretty tall, lean, curly hair and...is like to say green eyes but I'm not sure. Why, do you know him?" 

"W-What!?" Lou exclaimed. Why was Harry here? "I-I...yes. I do know him, but-"

"Fantastic! I'll show you the table right away, then!" The host clapped their hands together as if he had just aced a test. "This way sir."

"I-Wha...Okay," Lou shrugged, following the tall man to a booth in the corner.

And of course, there he was. Harry. Right as soon as their eyes met, their cheeks both turned red.

"Have a good meal, you too. A waiter will tend to you any minute now," the host waved before walking away, leaving the two alone.

As soon as he left, they both started to loudly ask questions.

"Why are you here?"

"Where's Liam?"

"When did you get here?"

"Did you set this up!?"

"I-" Harry was just about to ask something, when his phone binged, signifying that he had received a text message. 

Lou watched curiously as he pulled out his smartphone, then proceeded to face palm and groan loudly in annoyance.

"What?" They asked. Harry, his his head still on his palm, turned his wrist to have the screen face Lou. It showed a text message from Liam reading,

_**Have fun, you two. ;)** _

Harry still had his eyes covered, waiting for Lou to start screaming, accusing, the works. But instead, the completely unexpected happened, and took him completely off guard. Instead of yelling, he heard... 

Laughter. 

Lou was laughing.

He looked up in shock, staring in awe at Lou's figure as they giggled uncontrollably.

Their eyes crinkled in the corners and their shoulders shook with a mirthful grin on their lips as the melodic sound tumbled out from their mouth. It was truly beautiful, if not simultaneously confusing as well.

“What's so funny?” Harry asked, chuckling along.

“I-I-Liahahamahaha!” Lou tried to speak, the uncontrollable laughing taking over. It was one of those fits where you lock eyes with someone and you immediately get lost again.

Harry stared at them in confusion, before a nagging temptation to laugh overtook him. He started to giggle.

And the two laughed their heads off until their chests hurt. They received strange looks from these around them, others staring at the two weird people crying with laughter.

Luckily, Lou's mascara was waterproof.

"Whahahat was that?" Harry said, getting his giggles under control. "Is something on my face? Am I that funny?"

"N-No," Lou replied shakily, wiping stray tears away. "It's just so funny. I-I can't believe he set us up like this."

"Yeah," Harry sighed amusedly. "He really got us."

"Uh huh," Lou grinned. "Well, this is awkward. I think I'll be going now." They started to stand up.

"Wait, what?" Harry exclaimed in shock. "Seriously? You're going?"

Lou eyed him confusedly. "Uh...yeah? This was a misunderstanding."

"So? He booked a reservation for us! Why don't we make the most out of it?" Harry suggested hopefully. "Sit down."

Normally, Lou took orders from no one. For real, no one. Not even the principal. But there was something in those damn beautiful emerald eyes that just begged them to stay. He meant no harm. It was…safe.

They reluctantly sat back down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for just ending it there. and for the updates being so slow. this chapter was origionally supposed to be longer, but i decided to split it in to two so i could get uit out faster. sorry for the cliff hanger, im a little shit.


	7. HoOo Momma Shit Gets Deep

 

They reluctantly sat back down. "Okay..." they said, still being a bit cautious, not knowing what to expect.

Harry smiled, gratefully. "Thanks. T-To be honest, I though you were just gonna leave," he said, tucking a loose curl behind his ear. "Cause like-"

"It's fine," Lou replied, a bit awkwardly. This surprised them aback. Because, let's be completely honest. Since when was Lou Tomlinson nervous around anyone 

"Cause you know, Liam set this thing up basically and-"

"Calm down, Harry. I _know_ ," Lou assured with a wave of their hand. "Why are you so anxious all of a sudden? Feeling peaky or summat?"

"No. I'm fine, I-I just thought..." Harry stammered, scratching the back of his head. "Y'know. I mean, because I know you hate me and all," he said, making Lou's eyes widen in surprise. "A-And so I just assumed-" 

"Wait, what?" Lou questioned, staring in confusion. "What did you just say?" 

"That I just assumed?" Harry asked.

"No, _before_ that."

"I just ...thought? What does this have to do wi-"

"No, _after_ that!" Lou exclaimed in unexpected frustration.

 "I know you hate me?" Harry guessed with uncertainty.

 "Yes! That!" They pointed out.

 "W-What about it?" Harry asked, blushing timidly.

"You really think I _hate_ you?" Lou whispered in disbelief. "Really? 

"Well , yeah..." Harry muttered. "Seems kinda obvious, Lou. Its... I don't know. I mean you _do_ , don't you?"

"W-What!?" Lou was taken aback. "No! Of course I don't hate you! What in the _hell_ gave you that idea?"

"I don't know..." he mumbled in response. "Well, I mean... It's just- you're always kinda... kinda rude to me, no offense, and I know we got off to a bad start and I  gave you the wrong idea and everything so I just," Harry sighed, rambling. 

"Oh," Lou simply replied. _"Have I really been that mean to him?"_ They thought to themselves. _"I can't believe he hates me! Wait...no, that's not right. He thinks I hate him. So then...does he hate me? Maybe he's-"_

 "Lou?" Harry asked, snapping his fingers next to Lou's ear, and waking then from their daze. "You good? You were kinda staring off into space."

"Do you hate me?" Lou asked unexpectedly, taking Harry back by surprise.  

 "What?" He replied, staring in confusion.

"Do you hate me?" They repeated. "Well? _Do_ you?"

 "Of course not!" He exclaimed. "Why would I have any reason to hate you, Lou?"

 "You literally just rambled on about how I treat you like utter _shit_ ," they explained with a pointed expression. "It seems that I've given you _plenty_ of reason for you to dislike me," they huffed, crossing their arms across their chest.

"But that's not true! For God's sake, Lou. I don't hate-"

"Excuse me, but are you two ready to order?" 

The two rose their heads, taken off guard to see a blonde waiter staring at them with .

"Oh! Um, yes?" Lou stammered. They had  forgotten they were at a restaurant. 

"Okay! My name is Tess, and I'll be serving you today," she introduced herself. "Let's start with you," she pointed to Lou with her pen.

They quickly copy scanning over the menu. "I'll have the mozerella stuffed Parma ham chicken with a side of mash," they said, handing over their menu.

"Excellent choice," she smiled. "Our mash is homemade, you know."

"Interesting," Lou grinned.

 "And you, sir?" She asked, looking at Harry.

"Um...I'll just have the Chicken Alfredo," he said.

"Excellent..." she hummed, writing on her notepad. "Any sides?"

 "Em..." he drawled out. "No thank you."

 "Okay then, hun! I'll have your orders out in no time!" She flashed them a joyful grin before slipping off to the kitchen.

 They both nodded to her before turning back to each other.

"Anyways," Harry said, continuing the previously interrupted conversation. "I don't hate you, Lou. Honest. I really don't."

"Why not? I've been a total, complete _arse_ to you from the beginning!" Lou exclaimed.

"So what, does that mean you _want_ me to hate you?" Harry challenged.

"Of course not, obviously!" Lou groaned. "But I mean, it's not like you want to be my _friend_ or anything!" They rolled their eyes.

"Are you serious?" Harry asked in absolute shock. "What was like the first thing I said to you when we met!?"

"I don't know... Hi? How fucking charming. I'm wooed, _really_ I am," they snapped.

"No! I said I wanted to get to _know_ you, Jesus! I was trying be _friendly!_ But I guess that doesn't _work_ , because look where it landed us now! For God's sake, have you even _tried_ to be nice to me? Just _once_? Be honest!" Harry demanded.

"Fine! I'll _be_ honest! I _have_ tried being nice to you. Really," Lou admitted, ignoring the scoff that came from Harry. "But we were always so awkward around each other, and the circumstances were always fucked up, and I just... I'm just not very easy when it comes to meeting new people. Especially _guys_! I'm so- 

"What's wrong with guys?" Harry's challenged.

 "Nothing! I'm not homophobic or summat if _that's_ what you're trying to insinuate. It's not like I'm the _straightest_ person in the world," Lou countered, gesturing to their makeup. Which was still flawless, might I still add. "And what does that have to do with first impressions?"

"Well, _my_ first  impression of you, when we met, as well as for me being a pan sexual _guy_ ," Harry said with plenty of emphasis to go around. "Was that you were the most unique, sexy, and _goddamn beautiful h_ uman being I've _ever_ set my eyes on," he admitted with an extremely pointed expression. " _There's_ a first impression for you. Happy? Good." 

Lou stared at him in total shock. Their mouth was hung agape and their blue eyes were wide open in surprise. Out of all the different directions that conversation could've gone, they most certainly weren't expecting that. 

Harry let out a deep sigh. "There. I said it. All this time I've known you, and _this_ is how it turns out. The first time was an absolute bloody _failure_. So I spend all this time, planning how I was going to tell you how I felt. And I end up meaninglessly spitting it out like nothing!? It wasn't supposed to go that way," Harry rambled on, as Lou still gaped. "Anyways, I'm sorry. I've probably just made everything worse. I-I should go." 

"No," Lou said sternly, grabbing a hold of Harry's wrist, just as he was about to leave. "Sit down. _Now_."

 "But Lou, I-"

 

"SIT, Harry," Lou ordered persistently. And a bit loud if you asked the others in the tables around them.

Harry flinched at their harsh tone, but obliged, sitting down. 

"You can't just _walk away_ from me like that," they chastised. "I don't fucking think so. Sorry to say, but there's no escaping this, and there's nothing you can do about it. We are fucking talking about this." 

"What is there to talk about?" Harry exclaimed. "We were arguing again, I accidentally said I like you, end of story. End of conversation. Okay? I like you, and that's that. What else is there to consider?"

Without thinking, they suddenly blurted out, "Well, did you ever consider the fact that maybe I like you back?" Lou said with a timid but challenging tone.

Harry's face practically went white with shock. "W-What did you just say?" He stuttered in disbelief.

Lou gulped. "W-Well...How do you know I don't like you back? Y-You really shouldn't be so ignorant," they accused, but still stammering.

 "Do... _Do_ you?" Harry asked cautiously. 

 Lou sucked in a quick breath. "I-I..." they trailed off. For the first time in years, Lou Tomlinson didn't know what to say.

 They didn't know how to react. What are you supposed to do when someone asks if you fancy them? It's not really a simple yes or no question...at least not to them. _Did_ they like Harry? I mean, he sure was attractive. He seemed nice... Barely knew anything about him though... God. How Lou absolutely hated being an angsty, confused teenager.

 So, Lou... being the strange flirt that they are, did the first thing that came to their mind.

 Lou kissed him...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On the _cheek_. :) you dirty pervert

Harry took a sharp intake of breath, feeling the sensation of Lou's sweet, delicate lips on the skin of his cheek. They were really soft. He could only imagine what they would feel like on his lips.

When Lou pulled away, Harry felt as if a piece of his heart dropped. 

Lou looked to him expectantly, with an unreadable expression in their eyes. 

"T-Tess?"  Harry called out. Lou quirked an eyebrow confusedly. 

"Yeah sweetheart?" She chirped.

 

"C-Could we get those dishes to go?" 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> srry for being a troll


	8. Welcome To My Date Night Tutorial

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry that chapters are coming so slow! I have no other excuse other than i was being lazy. Updates with hopefully be every 4-5 days. I'm really trying to stay on top of it, so bear with me X/

Lou burst into their bedroom panting and sweating like hell. Their eyes were blown wide and their throats was tight as their chest heaved up and down unsteadily. 

Once their breathing calmed down, they dragged their feet over to their white, pristine colored bed, flopping their self down on the mattress, back down and letting out a huge sigh.

They stared blankly to the ceiling, their eyes following the little plastics clouds that were glued there from their childhood. 

One question rang through their mind.

_"What the fuck just happened?"_

********

_**2 days ago...** _

"T-Tess?"  Harry called out. Lou quirked an eyebrow confusedly. 

"Yeah sweetheart?" She chirped.

"C-Could we get those dishes to go?"

She smiled. "Of course!" She said, skipping away.

Lou quirked an eyebrow. "Interesting choice, Styles."

“Shut up,” Harry snapped, blushing fiercely. “You can't just _do_ that, you know.”

“Do what?"

“You know what I'm talking about!” He screeched, pointing semi-furiously. 

"Oh. That," Lou said, awkwardly scratching the back of their neck. "Yeah..." they shifted their gaze to the side, refusing to make eye contact. "Look, Harry. I-I'm so sorry. What I did was... I wasn't thinking and I was nervous and panicking and I just-"

"I get it," Harry interrupted them. "It was a mistake, I know. It didn't mean anything."

"No, that's not it!" Lou exclaimed, shaking their head back and forth. "That wasn't what I was gonna say at all!"

"Then _what!?_ What were you going to tell me, huh?" Harry screamed, making Lou flinch at his harsh tone. He sighed. "You are so fucking confusing, you know that? First, we're always fighting. Then, you _insist_  that you don't hate me, even though you're obviously pissed with me. And now, I tell you I like you, and when I ask if you like me back, you kiss em on the cheek, and tell me it meant nothing!?" Harry shouted, his voice raising in volume as he spoke.

"I-I...Harry, I'm so sorry-"

"Save it. I don't want you _apologies_ , Lou," Harry snapped. Seeing the shocked expression on Lou's face, he softened. "I just want answers."

"Okay..." Lou replied cautiously. "What exactly do you want to know, Harry?"

"How do you actually feel about me? Be honest," Harry insisted. Lou gulped nervously.

"I-I..." they stuttered. Lowering their head in defeat, they muttered, "I don't know, Harry."

"That's not an answer, Lou-"

"Yeah? Well it's the truth, okay!? I never know how I feel about you! Sometimes I wanna strangle your neck because you're pissing me off so much, and other times I just wanna throw you against a wall and kiss you! How am I supposed to explain that!?" Lou blurted out, face red with frustration.

"Here are your dishes, have a nice day!" Tess, the waitress came by, watching curiously as Lou silently signed the check, not breaking eye contact with Harry. As she walked away, all eyes were on the small table with the two people wordlessly staring each other down.

There was an awkward silence. A short period of time where no one spoke. It was only a wait to see who would speak first.

"Lou?" Harry asked, finally speaking for the first time in minutes.

"Yeah, Harry?" They said.

"W-Will you go out with me?" He stammered. 

"...What?" Lou gaped, their eyes wide with shock.

Harry blushed a deep red. "W-Will you g-go out with me?" He repeated, his eyes darting down to his lap. His ears were bright pink.

Lou's eyes widened, their cheeks dusted with a cherry red. "S-Sure," they stuttered timidly.

Harry smiled.

*********

"Fuck!" Lou screeched, the reality of the situation really sinking in. They had to get ready. _“Oh shit,”_ they thought to themselves. He long had it been since they had gone on a date? Lou thought for a  moment, checking the shiny turquoise painted clock on their wall. 

Harry was picking them up at 5:30, and it was-

“LOTTIE!!” They screamed at the top of their lungs. The eldest of their younger sisters tumbled into the room, her eyes wide and frantic.

“What?” She asked breathlessly. “Are you okay?”

“The fuck? Are you kidding me!? Of _course_ not!” They exclaimed. “I have to get ready for my date with Harry and he's picking me up at five _fucking_ thirty!” They whined

Lottie seemed to relax, reasoning an eyebrow sassily. “Lou, its four on the _dot_. You have over an _hour_ , aka, _plenty_ of time! Stop panicking,” she said, chuckling.

Lou pouted. “No, really! I'm stressing out! Do you think I'm even gonna have time for winged eyeliner!?”

Lottie rolled her eyes in amusement. “I think you'll be _just_ fine. Shouldn't you be applying highlighter by now?”

“Right! Fuck!” They frantically ran around their room, tearing it up like a hurricane trying to find their _goddamn_ highlighter palette. 

"Well," Lou muttered, to them self. "Let's mother- fucking do this."

"OI! Mouth!"

"Shut up, Lottie! I'm focusing!" they yelled back.

Anyways, it was time to get started.

First before anything major, came the easy essentials. Primer to keep everything in one place, concealer to make them look the _tiniest_ bit less dead, and applying some powder with a soft, fluffy brush to make sure they didn't look like a fucking oil painting. 

Now finally, the real work began. Eyebrows. In Lou's opinion, shaping one's eyebrows was an art. They had to be perfect. Not too arched, not too straight. Not too thick, not too thin. They eventually settled on a slight curve, framing their face perfectly.

Next came contour. Lou took a hold of their contour stick and wielded it like a saber. With extreme precision, they swiped it across their cheekbone. " _Hell_ yes," Lou smirked. "Perfect." They smoothly copied the other side, then blended it in with a beauty blender, and really brought out their temples, jawline, and cheeks with some warm bronzer. And hell, why not some on their nose, too? To top it off, they dusted on some sweetheart pink blush to give their face a bit of rosy color.

"Highlighter time," Lou grinned, speaking to no one is particular. They opened up their highlighter palette, gazing gleefully at the shimmering powders. They blew a bit on the mirror to rid it of the dirtying fallout, making them sneeze quietly. Anyways, taking hold of a fan brush between their fingers, they picked up a tiny, _tiny_ bit of the glow powder, and dusted it along their cheekbones, making an extremely _attractive_ kissy face while doing it.

Now the eyes. "I'm thinking maybe a subtle nudes look, with a cat wing," they said, pretending someone was listening. Taking a nudes palette out of their cram-packed makeup drawer, they ran a medium shadow brush over the a shimmery champagne shadow and patted the color onto their lid. Next, they dipped a crease blending brush into a medium warm matte brown, and applied it to their crease, blending it bin a back and forth motion. And lastly, they took a flat shading brush and picked up a smokey sparkling sienna, and swiped it across their outer lid, focusing on the outer lashine. They got up close to their hand mirror, making sure the eye look was up to normal standards, before proceeding to repeat the look on their other eye. 

And now, for the hardest part. Liquid liner. "Dear Lord," Lou muttered. They put a hand on their heart and whispered, "Please, for the love of Ryan Minaj. Queen, give me the power to make my eyeliner points match, I am forever in your gratitude," they did a quick cross across their chest, and got started.

First was the easy part. Lou quickly and effortlessly swiped the felt brush tip across their lashline thinly. They did this on both eyes. And now the point. They traced a curved line from their lower lashline to the corner of their eyelid, dragging it across to meet the rest of the drawn liner. Perfect.

"Wing so sharp it could kill a man,' Lou smirked. They traced another point on the other eye, trying desperately to make it as identical as possible to the first. The finished product wasn't perfect, but close enough. Afterwards, a quick coat of mascara was applied, and the eye look was complete.

Now finally, the lips. Lou went for a subtle lip gloss in the shade, 'Strawberry Kiss.' They swiped the tiny wand across their lower lip, and rubbed their lips together to coat both. Now the look was finished.

Lou sighed contently, smiling at the finished results. Now, just as they were about to celebrate, they realized:

_"Shit. Now I have to do my hair and pick out an outfit."_

_********_

Just as Lou finished styling their hair in to a side swept quiff, the ringing of door bell was heard. 

"I'll get it!" Lou shouted, making sure everyone in the house heard. The absolute worst thing that could possibly happen was their little sisters answering the door for them.

Lou cautiously opened the door, and what they saw next stunned them silent.

There was Harry, dressed in low and ridiculously patterned button up, rose in hand, smiling like an idiot.

"Ready?"


	9. Idk But its cute

"Ready?" Harry smiled.

"Eh, ready as I'll ever be," Lou chuckled nervously. 

"Shall we?" Harry moved his arms, gesturing to the empty space behind him.

Lou rose an eyebrow skeptically, looking left and right. "...Where's the car?"

"What car?" Harry asked confusedly.

"What do you mean, 'what car?' The one we're riding in, doofus!" Lou explained.

"Car? We're walking!" Harry grinned.

"Walking?" Lou scoffed. "Excuse me?"

"What? It's healthy," Harry said in amusement. "What's wrong with that?"

"What's _wrong_ is that I'm wearing three and a half inch heels, and you expect me to _walk?"_ Lou asked sassily.

"It's only barely a _5 minute_ walk, Lou," Harry chuckled.

They pouted in annoyance. "Yeah, but I _hate_ walking. _These legs_ ," they said, pointing their toe like a dancer, "were _not_ made for walking, Mr."

"Well, unless you want to call a taxi, which I doubt is even an option in this part of the city... _Those legs_ will have to do," Harry smirked.

Lou pouted in annoyance. "I don't suppose you'll _carry_ me there, will you?"

"Nope," Harry said, popping the 'p'.

They huffed in defeat. "Fine. But when my legs give out under me half way there, you'll never be able to say I hadn't told you so."

"Sure, Your Majesty. Let's go."

So with that, they made their way down the sidewalk, the heels of Lou's pumps click- clacking against the ground with every step they took. A wry frown etched it's way onto their lips. Harry noticed immediately.

"Aw. C'mon, Lou. What's with the face?" Harry asked, grinning slightly. "We've only been walking for like, thirty seconds. We're practically already there."

"My toes say otherwise," Lou grumbled, looking down.

"Maybe you shouldn't have worn high heels," he chuckled.

"Well, what do you expect me to do about it?" Lou asked with a pointed expression.

"Give me your foot," Harry ordered.

"Excuse me?"

"Let me see your foot, Lou," Harry repeated. 

"Um, might I ask why?" 

"There's this trick that my older sister, Gemma taught me whenever my shoes were uncomfortable. It's fool proof, and always works. Trust me."

"And what might this magical piece of advice be, Harold?" Lou asked skeptically, raising their foot.

Harry crouched down in his knees, and without a word, he grabbed Lou's ankle and slipped the shoe off. He smiled cheekily.

Lou clapped slowly. "Wowww...Well done. Amazing work."

"Hey, it helps," Harry shrugged. "My sister does it all the time."

"So your sister just walks around barefoot all the time?"

"Pretty much, yeah," He chuckled.

"Weird," Lou commented with a quirked eyebrow. "Anyways, how much farther? I'm bored. Are we there yet?" they whined.

"Actually, yeah. We're here," Harry smiled. They stopped in front of a brightly lit building with music and loud, boisterous singing coming from inside.

"You're taking me to a fucking club!!?" Lou exclaimed.

"No," Harry corrected. "It's not a _club_ , it's a _lounge_."

"What's the difference?" Lou asked, exasperated. "You trying to get me drunk, Styles? Is that why we're here?"

"No!" Harry blurted out in disbelief. "Just- follow me."

"Okay..." Lou drawled out skeptically. When Harry brought them upon a 16 year old girl singing 'Girls Just Wanna Have Fun,' they did as double take.

"Karaoke!?" Lou squeaked. "That's your idea of a first date? Singing in front of a bunch of bloody strangers?"

"I think it looks fun!" Harry smiled cheekily.

"But I can't even sing!" They screeched.

"So? Neither can I! It doesn't matter," Harry shrugged.

"If you think even for a second that I would even _consider_ walking up there then sweetheart, you've got another thing coming," Lou said nervously.

"C'mon, Lou! It'll be fine! Please?" Harry pleaded.

"Absolutely not," Lou said, crossing their arms in defiance. 

"Why not?" Harry pouted.

"Well, " Lou started. "I mean, for one, my singing is rubbish..."

"-Which doesn't matter because no one here can really sing anyways," Harry interjected.

"I'm terribly awkward in front of crowds and everyone will for sure get a piss out of that..."

"-Not if you don't _let_ them."

"And there's no way in _hell_ that you'll get me up there in the first place!" Lou exclaimed.

"Really...?" Harry asked sarcastically. "We'll see about that."

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean, H- ah!" Lou yelped as Harry forcefully grabbed their forearm. "The hell? Where are we..." Lou then noticed that the pair was getting closer to the stage. "Oh no," they muttered, panicking. "No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, nononononononono!" Lou seethed through clenched teeth, desperately struggling to free themselves from Harry's grip. They kicked and thrashed but it was no use. He wasn't taking no for an answer. "Harry, I swear to God, if you even _think_ about putting me on the spot like this, I'm going to-" 

And at that moment, Lou froze. They stopped fighting, because i was no use.

They were already on stage.

Lou was frozen in shock. Their hands were glued to their sides, trembling. Everyone stared at the shaking person on stage wearing skinny jeans and the patterned, flowy tank top.

"I... I..." Lou anxiously stammered. It was silent and all eyes were on them.

Harry was in front of the stage, staring at Lou in concern. He didn't know their stage fright was _that_ bad. When he saw Lou mouth the words, "Help me" to him with a desperate look in their face, he started to panic. A tinge of guilt surged through him.

 _"Shit, Harry,"_ he thought. _"Do something!"_

Without thinking, Harry ran over to the DJ, whispering something inaudible, and ran on stage right next to Lou.

"W-What are y-you d-d-doing?" Lou whispered shakily.

"Saving your, ass. C'mon!" he ordered, holding a microphone out to Lou. 

"B-But I can't sing-"

"Who cares? Just take it!" Harry begged, still holding Lou's mic for them to take.

Lou nervously took the mic out of Harry's hands, shivering as their skin brushed up against each other's. The music started to play. A piano melody rang through Lou's ears as they recognized the tune.

Harry began to sing.

_If I don't say this now I will surely break_  
_As I'm leaving the one I want to take_  
_Forget the urgency but hurry up and wait_  
_My heart has started to separate_

 

He has a deep, sultry voice, making Lou melt with adoration.

_Oh, oh, oh_  
_Oh, oh, oh_  
_Be my baby_  
_Oh, oh, oh_  
_Oh, oh, oh_  
_Oh, oh, oh_  
_Be my baby_  
_I'll look after you_

 

Harry looked to Lou expectantly. And after working up the courage, they lifted the mic to their lips and sang.

_There now, steady love, so few come and don't go_  
_Will you, won't you be the one I'll always know?_  
_When I'm losing my control, the city spins around_  
_You're the only one who knows, you slow it down_

_Oh, oh, oh_  
_Oh, oh, oh_  
_Be my baby_  
_Oh, oh, oh_  
_Oh, oh, oh_  
_Oh, oh, oh_  
_Be my baby_  
_I'll look after you_  
_And I'll look after you_

 

Harry gasped lightly. Lou's voice was beautiful. It was sweet and angleic. Harry could listen to it all day. He lifted his mic and they sang together i perfect harmony.

_If ever there was a doubt_  
_My love she leans into me_  
_This most assuredly counts_  
_She says most assuredly_

_Oh, oh, oh_  
_Oh, oh, oh_  
_Be my baby_  
_I'll look after you_  
_(After you)_  
_Oh, oh, oh_  
_Oh, oh, oh_  
_Be my baby_  
_Oh, oh, oh_

 

The crowd swayed together to the song, awestruck at how the two sang in perfect harmony. Their voices together sounded amazing.

_It's always have and never hold_  
_You've begun to feel like home_  
_What's mine is yours to leave or take_  
_What's mine is yours to make your own_

_Oh, oh, oh_  
_Oh, oh, oh_  
_Be my baby_  
_Oh, oh, oh_

_Oh, oh, oh_  
_Oh, oh, oh_  
_Be my baby_  
_Oh, oh, oh_

 

Harry put down his mic, letting Lou finish the song by themself. Lou, having been completely oblivious, continued singing.

_Oh, oh, oh_  
_Oh, oh, oh_  
_Be my baby_  
_Oh, oh, oh_

 

Lou finished, doing a double take as the crows cheered in a standing ovation. They stood there, shocked.

 

"We did it," Lou whispered to themself in awe. They looked to Harry, wonder shining through their crystal blue eyes. "Harry, we actually did it!"

 

"No, Lou," Harry corrected, taking Lou's small hand in his.

 

" _You_ did it."

Lou smiled in adoration, and turned to the crowd as their cheers got louder. When they listened closer, it could be heard:

"More! More! More!!"

Harry and Lou looked to each other.

This was gonna be a fun night.

 


	10. Date Night Something

 

"That was so fun," Lou giggled, running out of the lounge.

 

"Yeah," Harry smiled, running a large hand through his curls. 

“I-It was _crazy!_ There were so many people and I- oh my god!” Lou buzzed.

Harry chuckled in admiration. “You had fun?”

"Yeah," Lou repeated. "So what now?"

Harry took their hand, and looked directly into their crystal blue eyes. "Here, Lou. Come with me. I have something to show you."

Lou gasped, blushing slightly. "O-Okay," they said, letting Harry guide them through the eventide evening. 

Lou felt the wind whistle through their hair, tossing is around like a game. With Harry's hand firm around their wrist, they curiously followed the curly boy through the dewy grass, having no idea what to expect.

Eventually, they felt their path start to incline.

"Harry?" They looked around. Where are we going?" They asked, as they descended upwards on what seemed like a hill.

"Just wait," Harry assured them. We'll be there in like, ten seconds."

So, two continued climbing the hill. Lou tried looking in the distance for anything interesting, but the tall, thick trees blocked their view.

Once they were nearing the top, Harry paused walking. "Lou, close your eyes."

"Why?" Lou asked confusedly. 

"Just do it," he repeated. Lou obliged, lids covering their crystal blue eyes shut.

Lou felt themself coming to the top of the hill, and sat down on the soft grass like Harry had ordered.

"Okay. _Open_."

When Lou opened their eyes, they gasped. "Oh, _Harry_."

What Lou saw was nothing short of incredible. From the top of the hill was a view  of the gorgeous sunset that has been previously covered by the trees. Pigments of bright yellow, pink, and orange swirled around the sky, painting the romantic setting perfectly.

" _Wow_ ," was all Lou had say.

"...Do you like it?" Harry asked hesitantly.

Lou turned to him with a huge smile on their lips. "I love it! It's _beautiful_!" They hushed in awe.

Harry let out a sigh of relief. "Thanks. My sister and I used to sneak out here late at night in the summer and watch the sun go down. And now I get to share that with you."

Lou flashed him a tiny grin in return. "Thank you. That's proper sweet."

Harry smiled fondly. "Anything for you."

The two sat there in silence, watching the sun slowly disappear under the horizon. Lou squished and scrunched the soft, dewy grass between their bare toes. The thin blades delicately tickled the sensitive soles of their feet, making Lou let out a tiny giggle at the feeling.

Harry turned to them confusedly. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing," Lou said softly. "The grass kind of tickled me."

 

"Ah," Harry nodded in understanding. After a moment, Harry replied, “Didn't know you were ticklish.”

Lou blushed. “I mean, not _that_ much.”

Harry Rose an eyebrow in amusement. “Really?"

Lou gulped nervously. They nodded.

Harry crept closer on his hands and feet. “So you wouldn't mind if  I did… this?” He asked, wiggling a couple fingertips against Lou’s tummy. They giggled, pulling away, as Harry tickled them lightly

“Stohop that!” They laughed, crinkled appearing around their eyes. “Nohohohohohohoho!” They started to squirm as Harry tickled them harder. “Quihihihihihihit ihihihihihihihihit!”

Harry chuckled. “This is so funny! You're even more ticklish than _I_ am!”

“Fuhuhuhuhuhuhuhuck ohohohohohoff!” Lou swatted his offending hands away, kicked their legs, did anything to get Harry to stop. This went on for a couple minutes, Lou’s mirthful laughter filling the air. 

Lou jumped back, panting tiredly with hot, red cheeks. “That…” they breathed. “That sucked.”

Harry shrugged cheekily. “I was having a _fine_ time.”

“For God’s sake, I'm the oldest sibling in my family! I'm not supposed to be tickled! I'm supposed to tickle younger people! No ones tickled me since I was _five_!” They complained.

“Really? I'm the youngest in _my_ family,” Harry said, folding his arms and laying his head across them. “My older sister used to tickle me all the time.”

“Never known what that's like,” Lou commented. “I've always just had my younger siblings.”

“How many siblings do you have?” Harry asked curiously.

“Eight siblings, including six sisters, one stepsister, and one brother,” they listed off.

“Wow,” Harry said surprisedly. “That's a lot. I just have my one sister, Gemma.”

“Cool,” they commented. “Small fam then?”

“Mhmm,” Harry hummed. After a moment, he asked, “Stepsister, huh?”

Lou swallowed a bit uncomfortably. “Yeah. Why?”

“W-Well, if you don't mind me asking,” Harry fumbled nervously with his fingers in his lap. “Uh… What happened?”

Lou sighed sadly. “There was a divorce. I- My Mum’s been through a couple. Luckily, she's finally found someone who makes her feel loved, and I'm really happy for her. B-But yeah. It was hard at the time.”

Harry frowned. “I'm sorry. I know what it's like to have your family go through divorce. My Mum…” he trailed off.

“I'm sorry. I-I guess we have something in common, huh?”

“Yeah,” Harry smiled. “I guess we do.”

They smiled. A short, comfortable silent went by, before Harry spoke up once again.

“You lied to me, you know.”

Lou sat up, turning to him confusedly. “What?”

“You lied to me,” Harry repeated, sitting up as well.

“I lied? About what?” Lou asked.

“You said you couldn't sing. That was a lie,” Harry explained. 

Lou scoffed. “ _Please_.”

“I'm serious! You have an absolute _brilliant_ voice!" He exclaimed.

“Well, it doesn't really deserve a standing _ovation_ or anything…” they mumbled.

“Um, according to the _audience_ , it did!” Harry said in exasperation.

“Well, so did _you_!” Lou said, nudging Harry's shoulder. “I didn't know you could sing, Mate.”

Harry blushed. “Thanks. I-I used to be in a band.”

“Really?” Lou asked in surprise. “When?”

“Sophomore year. We were called White Eskimo,” Harry chuckled.

“Funny, so was I,” Lou said.

“You were in a band called White Eskimo?” Harry asked sarcastically.

“No, idiot,” Lou rolled their eyes. “I was in a _band_. We were called The Rogue.”

“Ooh, sounds tough,” Harry poked fun at them.

“Shut up,” Lou groaned. “It wasn't like _that_. It was all in good fun."

Harry hummed in response.

Lou let out a reminiscing sigh. “You know what's funny about all of this?”

“What?” Harry asked.

“I did this whole thing without shoes on,” they let out a small laugh.

“HAH!” Harry laughed, slapping a hand over his mouth directly afterwards. Lou cracked up.

“Whahat wahas that!?” Lou exclaimed in hysterics at Harry's hot red cheeks.

“Shut up,” he muttered.

Lou pulled themself together, taking g a deep breath. The assured Harry, “Sorry. I didn't mean to offend you or anything. Your laugh is just so…”

“Embarrassing,” Harry blushed.

“Adorable!” Lou gushed, teasingly punching Harry's cheeks between their fingers.

“Stop,” he whined. “You're just like my Mum!”

“Haha,” Lou chuckled. “This…This was fun.”

“Yeah?” Harry said, staring to them with glee.

“Yeah,” Lou nodded. 

"Maybe..." Harry started reluctantly. "Maybe we could do it again some time?"

"I think I'd like that," Lou smiled.

Harry flashed a toothy grin. "That's great! There... There's one last thing I had planned for tonight. If you don't mind."

"Anything," Lou said. "What is it?" They asked.

Harry bit their lip nervously. "Well, you'll have to close your eyes again."

Lou closed their eyes. In the darkness, they heard a shuffling in the grass, and the warmth of another presence in front of them. Curiously, they waited for what was to come next.

And soon it came, as they felt the soft touch of Harry's lips on theirs.

Stunned, Lou froze for a moment, not knowing how to react. Should they kiss back? Acknowledging the warm, unexplainably pleasurable feeling bubbling up in their chest, it seemed clear that... Lou might actually have been enjoying it?

This was decidedly confirmed when a pang of disappointment shot through Lou's stomach as Harry started to pull away. 

Harry's face was full of sorrow and embarrassment. "I-I'm so sorry. This was a bad idea," he muttered. Tears started to form in his eyes.

They shook their head softly. "N-No, Harry! That's not it! I-"

"This was a mistake. I-I-I'm so fucking sorry, Lou. I should go..."

"No, Harry! Stop!" Lou yelled, grabbing forcefully onto Harry's wrist.

As a last resort to making sure Harry knew it was what they wanted, they latched their hands around Harry's neck and locked their lips deeply.

They felt Harry freeze beside them, but eventually started to kiss back. They lips meticulously moved together. There was no tongue. Just passion.

When they pulled away, gasping, the two stared deeply into each other's eyes.

"Lou," Harry said softly. "I... I really like you. I really do."

Lou smiled, blushing. They pressed their foreheads together and whispered in his ear.

"I think I might like you, too."


	11. Well Fuck Me Gently With a Chainsaw

 

Lou was still absolutely buzzing about the kiss. However, this excitement also came with a hint of fear. As they walked into school the morning after, they had no idea what to expect. The date had been in Sunday, and the hadn't talked about the events that had occurred that night since then, leaving Lou completely in the dark as for where their relationship with Harry was standing.

They had no idea what was going to happen, but they did their makeup extra nice just in case. Pale pink lipgloss and blush, plus some rose gold liner on the lower lash line. Champagne eyeshadow and a thin line of black eyeliner, along with an extra coat of black mascara for good measure.

The first thing they faced after entering the doors was a strong body forcefully colliding int them. It was Liam. And apparently he had a lot of questions.

"You and Harry went out? Are you dating? How did it go? Did you kiss? When did-"

"Shut the fuck up!" Lou interrupted him loudly. "How do you even know about the date?"

"Harry told me," Liam said. Lou rolled their eyes. Of course. Liam continued, "He didn't let me in on any details, though. That's why _you're_ here. Spill."

"Who are you, the mother fucking TMZ?" Lou scoffed jokingly. "Look, I'll let you in on all the details later. But for now, I need to go to class or Mrs. Ferguson will crush me, okay?"

"Okay," Liam huffed. "But you have to tell me everything. And I mean _everything_."

"Deal," Lou said. "Now let me go! You're worse than me mum on the first day of Primary School!"

"Whatever. See ya!"

"Bye," Lou waved.

********

Chemistry class later that day was confusing to say the least. Lou didn't know whether to be excited or terrified to interact with Harry after last night. They were sweating buckets, and their mind was turmoil.

The two sat together like usual, but instead of the usual irritable tension between them like before, it was more an awkward test to see who would speak first. Sometimes one would open their mouth, but nothing would actually come out.

Lou fumbled with their hands, stealing subtle glances towards the curly lad. They debated whether to bring up the kiss or not. It wasn't exactly something you could low key mention in casual conversation...

_"Hey, I’m really not sure how to say this but I have no idea what kind of relationship we have. Sure you're sexy as hell and a great kisser but I'm shit at relationships and you're probably way out of my league, you hot ass fuck. Breakups are my specialty. What about you?"_

“What’cha thinking about, Lou?” Harry asked, waking them from their daze. 

“N-Nothing,” Lou stammered, looking away. “W-What were you thinking about?”

“You.”

 He smiled cheekily, making Lou blush madly.

“O-Oh,” Lou stuttered in reply.“God, Lou,” they thought. _“Why you gotta be so damn awkward?”_

“Is this about last night?” Harry asked. 

"I guess? Maybe? Kinda?" They sighed in defeat. "Yeah. I-It is," Lou stammered.

"Is that why you're not talking to me? Was it the kiss? I'm so sorry, I thought you were okay with it," Harry started to ramble.

"N-No! “Lou exclaimed worriedly.

“You weren't?” Harry asked solemnly. “Is that why you were ignoring me? I'm so sorry, I-”

“It's not that I'm trying to ignore you, I promise!” Lou blurted out. “And you didn't do anything wrong. It's not you. I'm just confused is all.” They explained.

“Oh,” Harry drawled out. “What are you confused about?”

“I-I just…” Lou stammered. “After the date, I'm… I don't know how to explain it. I've been thinking about it a lot, and I'm trying to figure shit out.”

“What kind of shit?” Harry asked, genuinely concerned.

“Just,” Lou started, trying to find the words to say. “What are we?”

“Homosexuals?”

“You're such a doofus. That's not what I mean!” Lou laughed exasperatedly. "Plus, I'm Bi.”

“And I'm Pan,” Harry said.

 “That's beautiful, Harry,” Lou chuckled. “Anyways, what I meant to ask was like, what are we? Like, _relationship_ \- wise. What are we? Are we together? Like boyfriends or just friends that happen to both like each other? Does that make me your partner or summat?”

Harry chuckled, taking Lou’s small, soft hand in his. “It can of you want it to.”

Lou blushed furiously.

“Is that something you want?” Harry asked.

Lou thought for a moment, before placing their other hand over Harry's. 

“I think it is.”

*******

“You _WHAT_!?”

“Shut up, bloody wanker!” Lou whisper- shouted, looking around to make sure no one heard. “Do you really want the whole _school_ talking about this shit? It's not a big deal!” They whined, walking down the hall.

“It's not shit, Lou!” Liam exclaimed through the phone in exasperation. “You and Harry _kissed_! You went on a date! And I'm supposed to pretend it's not big deal? You're my best mate! Everything exciting that happens to you is a big deal!”

"That's proper sweet. Really, it is. But I haven't dated in ages. I'm not really experienced right now.”

“So? It will be fine!”

“No it fucking won't! You don't understand!”

“Yes, I do!” Liam reassured them. “What do you have to lose, mate?”

“The one chance of being in a relationship with someone who doesn't end up being a douche bag?”

Liam huffed. “Come on, Lou! Give yourself some credit. You know you have a huge chance!”

“I mean, sure! Yeah we kissed and went on a date, but I haven't had a boyfriend in forever! What am I supposed to do, Liam!?” They cried dramatically.

“Stop your bellyaching, Lou! You're fine."

"Am I? What if I screw it up like last time?" They cried fearfully.

"You won't mess it up! Plus, what happened wasn't your fault."

"Yes, it totally was! And I'm probably going to-"

“Oomph!”

“Ah!”

Lou collided with a large chest. Their phone dropped to the floor from the force. When they looked up, it was none other than partner in crime to their worst enemy. It was Niall Horan.

Fuck.

They trembled in fear, unable to move, watching as Niall bent down and picked up the phone off the ground. He hung up on Liam and stared at Lou with intensity.

"N-Niall, I-"

"Quiet," Niall ordered sternly. 

They turned to run away before they got hurt, but the taller lad stopped them by forcefully grabbing their wrist and dragging them along to somewhere.

_"Oh my god, this is not happening,"_ Lou gulped nervously.

Niall dragged them to an empty janitor's and locked the door behind them.

"Lou, I'm-"

“N-Niall! Please don't hurt me! Oh my god! Please! I'm sorry!” Lou squeaked. “Really, I'm so sorry, it was an accident, I swear! I didn't mean to! P-Please don't beat me up!-”

“Woah, mate! Calm down! I'm not gonna hurt you!” The blonde exclaimed in a thick Irish accent.

“W-What? You're not?” Lou whimpered confusedly.

“No! I… I actually need your help,” Niall asked sincerely. His blue eyes were  demanding, staring to Lou intensely, begging for help.

Lou swallowed hard. “I- uh. I mean, you… What do you need?”

Niall took a deep breath.

“How do you know if you're gay or not?”

Lou blinked rapidly in confusion, replaying the question in their head, trying to comprehend it. Their next response was a clever and intellectual piece of dialogue.

“What?”

“Lou,” Niall breathed out anxiously. “I think I might not be straight. I like a guy."

Lou tried to process all this newfound information. "You do? You are? _Who?"_

"Zayn."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guess who's back!!! I'm sorry for the wait. Updates will be coming semi-regularly because school is starting up again soon. :( I'm so so so so sorry!!!


	12. WhAt ThE fUcK

“Who?"

"Zayn.”

Lou gasped in shock. “S-Seriously!?” They whisper yelled. “Liked _Zayn,_ Zayn? Zayn _Malik_ Zayn!? As in Zayn Malik, beats me up every _day_ , Zayn!!?”

Niall nodded, his lips pressed together in a thin line as they looked aside, blushing.

Lou ran a hand through their hair. “Wow. I… This is. Wow,” they gaped.

Niall gave a timid smile. “Yeah. Believe me, it's a shocker for me, too.”

Lou huffed out a deep breath, baffled by this new- found information. “But… Zayn! He's…”

“Homophobic? I know,” Niall sighed. “ _Trust_ me. I know…”

“No offense, but it's not like _you've_ been much _better_ ,” Lou snapped harshly. They saw Niall wince at their words. Lou softened their expression and tried a different approach. “Sorry. I didn't mean it like that. It's just… you and Zayn were always kinda… you know. So I just assumed that… you know,” Lou shrugged. “Sorry, I don't know where I'm going with this. Do you kinda understand what I'm saying?”

Niall huffed. “Yeah, I do. And… it’s complicated. Personally, I don't have a problem with it. You know. L-Liking your same sex. In fact, one of me best mates from primary was Pan. It's never been in my best interests to call people derogatory names and shit. It kind of just… happened.”

“Really?” Lou asked, surprised. “Then why do you and Zayn always give me shit for it?”

Niall shrugged half- heartedly. “Sorry. I just kind of always did what Zayn told me to do. That's just how it worked between us. I followed his lead and he wouldn't leave me under the bus.”

Lou shook their head in misunderstanding. “Why? You _really_ didn't have to do that…” they mumbled.

Niall sighed. “I know. It's just- Zayn's all I've ever had. He's the only reason I don't get beat up all the time during school. Sure he's a bit of an arse hole, but he's all I've got. So I kinda just… let _him_ take the lead, I guess.”

Lou nodded in understanding.  They scooted forward a bit, resting an assuring hand on Niall’s leg. “You don't have to do _everything_ Zayn says. You're your own person, Niall. Why should you let him take control of your life? Nobody ever said being popular was worth giving up your opinions.”

Niall blushed. “Thanks, Lou. That's really nice.”

Lou smiled. They looked to him with sincere eyes. “So, tell me. When did you realize? That's you might be…” they trailed off.

Niall shifted uncomfortably. “It's kind of a long story…”

“I've got plenty of time,” Lou grinned cheekily.

Niall rose an eyebrow in amusement. “Didn't take you for the skipping class kind of type, Tomlinson.”

“Oi, you don't know everything about me, Horan,” Lou smirked.

Niall chuckled, then sighed solemnly. “Okay.”

Lou stared to him with supportive eyes. “Going ahead. I'm listening.”

Niall smiled. Looking aghast, they started to speak. 

“I've been best friends with Zayn since… as long as I can _remember_. Years, most likely. I'm not sure. But I do know one thing. I was a total loser before I met him. But for some reason, he decided to take me in. I don't know why…

"I don't know when it started. There was a time when I started getting really nervous when I was around him. At the time, I thought maybe is was just anxiety from the newfound social attention or whatever. But me, being the paranoid person that I am, decided to look it up. Turns out it was more..." Niall explained. Lou nodded, gesturing for him to continue, which he did.

“I learned about everything that I had been confused about. So I came to the conclusion that I was Pan, and… I liked Zayn.

"It was only a couple weeks ago when I realized. Between him and I being so close, my newfound knowledge, or just him being fucking _gorgeous_... I finally knew that I was attracted to him as more than just my best mate." He finished. “B-But he's homophobic. What am I supposed to do? I-I need help, Lou. Please.” He whispered with vulnerability showing through his thick Irish accent.

Lou smiled sincerely. “That must be so fucking hard. I had no idea,” they whispered. “I don't know, Niall. I'm sorry.”

Niall looked to him with a dismayed frown. “You have to know something! _You'd_ know how to approach Zayn!”

Lou raised an eyebrow in confusion. “The fuck? Why would you think _I'd_ know what Zayn is like?” They asked.

 

“Well… you _did_ used to date him, Lou…” 

 

Lou’s voice caught in their throat, emitting a strangled choking noise. Their blue eyes widened to the size of plates and their mouth hung wide open. They didn't speak a word. 

Niall blushed. “Sorry, Mate. I know that was a long time ago. A-And I'm guessing you two didn't end in the best terms…”

“Usually I just pretend it didn't happen,” Lou mumbled, finding their voice once again. “It wasn't the most sunshine and rainbows breakup, if you know what I mean…”

Niall nodded in understand. “I know. And I'm really sorry about bringing it up. I bet it's a touchy subject to talk about.”

Lou scoffed lightly. “Heh, you have no idea. After we started to date, things were perfect. Then it all went South.” They sighed.

Niall quirked an eyebrow in confusion. “If you don't mind me asking… what happened? Nobody ever told me.”

Lou smiled sincerely. “I understand. It's okay, I'll tell you…

“Basically, we started dating in freshman year. I had no idea if he was bi or gay or whatever when I asked him out. But miraculously, he said yes. After that, we started to go out regularly. We weren't very open with our relationship, but it was okay. We had each other, and at the time, that was all that mattered. We never had sex, never even kissed. And we didn't even care, because we were so happy with each other. And it was amazing. He was so happy. I was, too. And for a while, I was hoping it would never end. But then… things changed.”

Niall creased his brows together in concern. “What happened?”

Lou sighed. “His dad found out. And he… he wasn't too happy about Zayn being intimate with… well, me. So Zayn got in trouble. And I did, too. Somehow, his dad convinced Zayn that being anything except straight was a sin. So when Zayn came back to school the next day, I ran to him asking how it went and if he was okay. But instead, he did something I had never expected in a million years. H-He _hit_ me…”

Niall gasped in terror.

Lou nodded sadly. “He beat me up. Right in the middle of the hallway, yelling at me about how bad it was to be gay, calling me derogatory names and insults, and… it was just too much. And it never stopped. It was like he was corrupted or summat. He had changed.” Lou finished, wiping a tear from their eye.

Niall sighed solemnly. “I am so sorry, Lou. I had no idea…”

Lou smiled gratefully. “It's okay. Don't let my sob story discourage you, Niall. The only reason he's homophobic is because of his dad. Maybe there's still some good left in him.”

“I sure hope so,” Niall frowned. “But how can I know for sure?”

Lou thought for a moment, humming. Suddenly, they perked up. “I know! Ask him to the Halloween Costume get- together this weekend at Ed’s house! And you can tell him then!”

Niall smiled. “That's a great idea! Thanks Lou!” He exclaimed, wrapping Lou in a tight hug.

Lou chuckled. “No problem, Mate. Now go get your man,” they said, patting him on the back.

Niall gave him one last squeeze before getting up to leave. But first, they turned around. “You too. Good luck with that Curly lad.”

“You mean Harry? Thanks,” Lou blushed.

“His names Harry? Funny. I used to know a Harry.”

Lou chuckled. “Small world.”

“Yeah. Small world.”

  
Sent from my iPhone

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Loves. :) I'm really sorry about the lack of updates lately. I'm taking a break for a while. I have no other reason except I'm just fucking lazy. Really really really really sorry!!! But I will be back soon. No more than a couple weeks, I promise. Sorry. See you soon!


	13. Sorry I sorry I'm so sorry

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IM FUCKING BACK! I'm so sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm SORRY for disappearing and I'm sure updates aren't going to be magically frequent but I'm sorry I just feel like I've let you all down. Fuck.

After the ear piercing ring of the bell, Niall and Lou open and closed the doors of the janitors closet, preparing to depart their separate ways.

“Wait! Before you go!” Niall squeezed Lou’s shoulder. “Thank you, Lou. I think I'm gonna ask him out,” he smiled.

Lou smiled. “Of course. It was no problem. You should totally go for it.” They winked.  
   
“I will! See ya!” Niall waved.  
   
"See ya, Niall," Lou waved him goodbye. They watched the blonde skip off happily and chuckled to themself. Lou grinned, humming a happy tune before heading off to class.  
   
As they turned to make a left, Lou let out a surprised help as  their forearm was grabbed forcefully by a hand that belonged to none other than-  
   
"Liam?"  
   
"What the hell, Lou!? Where _were_ you!? You know you can't just hang up on me like that, what were you thinking!? You missed English! I was worried sick the whole time. So I spend the whole period starting at the clock, only expecting the worst. And so imagine my surprise when I was walking down the hall and see you coming out of a janitor's closet smiling and rubbing elbows with none other than Niall fucking Horan!!? Were you trying to get yourself killed? Does Harry know? Are you cheating on Harry, Lou!? Because, Tomlinson I swear to God!-"  
   
"Oh my God, Liam! Calm down!" Lou screamed, jerking their arm away. "What the hell is your damage!!? I'm not cheating on Harry, I wasn't trying to get myself killed, and I wasn't rubbing elbows with Niall, for gods sake! We were just talking!"  
   
"Talking!? You were gone for like an hour! And since when are you talking with Zayn Malik's partner in crime!?" Liam said in exasperation.  
   
"Since he told me he's not homophobic!" Lou whisper- yelled through gritted teeth.  
   
Liam did a double take, his eyes widened in shock as he took an abrupt step back. "He's ... He's not?" He asked in exasperation. “B-But he's-”  
   
"Always treating me like shit. I know. And trust me when I say I was surprised, too. He likes Zayn Malik," Lou explained.  
   
"He does!? But Zayn is-"  
   
Lou sighed, cutting him off. "Homophobic. I know, it's a bit of a shocker. And it's a really, really long story. I'll fill you in later, okay? Now get off my case.”  
   
"Okay," Liam nodded. "C'mon, then. It's lunch time.”  
   
“Joy to the world! More chemicals and disease for everyone!” Lou threw their arms up and smiled sarcastically.  
   
Liam smirked. “I think I can do without the extreme sarcasm.”  
   
“You love it,” they smiled.  
   
And after, the two interlocked arms and walked into the greasy cafeteria, the smell of sweat, oil, and food poisoning filling the air.  
   
********  
   
“Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait! Run that by me again…?”  
   
Lou sighed, rubbing their temples. “This is the third time, Liam. We've been over this. How many times do I have to tell you?” They muttered, like a disappointed mother.  
   
“Enough times to make me fucking understand! This makes no sense, Lou!” Liam complained. “First, Niall’s homophobic, then he's not, then he's gay for Zayn Malik? Is this even supposed to make sense?”  
   
Lou huffed in annoyance. “Okay. I'll make this short and simple. So I'm walking down the hall, talking to you, and I bump into Niall. Then he turns off my phone and pulls me into a janitor’s closet. And in my head I'm thinking, ‘I'm so totally fucked,’ right? But then he's all like, ‘I don't wanna hurt you,’ and I'm like, ‘Why?’ And then he tells me he likes Zayn, and-” Lou took in a long, deep intake of air to catch their breath before continuing. “And then all of a sudden he's Pan for Zayn since weeks ago, and I'm all like, ‘Well, fuck me gently with a chainsaw!’ So he explains shit and then I explain shit and basically now he's gonna ask Zayn out.”  
   
Liam sat there with a shocked expression on his face. “I- wow. I'm just… _wow_. I had no idea!”  
   
Lou sighed. “I know, right? It took me completely by surprise!”  
   
Liam hummed in agreement. “So… is he gonna tell him? Y’know, that he likes him?”  
   
Lou shrugged. “It's hard to say. But I think he will. At least, I really hope so! You know that Halloween costume whatever at Ed’s coming up?”  
   
“Of course! How could I possibly miss it? It's gonna be the party of the century!”  
   
“Yeah! I think he's gonna ask Zayn out to that and tell him then,” Lou smiled. “I'm really proud of him. It's gonna take some balls for sure.”  
   
Liam nodded. “Oh boy, yeah. I'm scared for him, to be honest…”  
   
Lou nodded, replying, “I know… but I think he can do it. He can probably just pass it off as asking him out as a friend. Right? Or at least that's what I told him. Hopefully it'll all work out.”  
   
“Mhmm. Yeah. Are you sure nothing will go wrong?” Liam pondered, concerned.

“Well, October is the month of magic,” Lou smirked, raising an eyebrow cheekily. A mischievous glint flashed through their eyes.

“You cheeky bastard,” Liam laughed. “You're such a flirt.”

“And it only makes me more attractive,” Lou batted their long eyelashes.

“Charming,” Liam said with a flat sarcastic tone.

“I know, right?” Anyways, speaking of knights in shining armor, you gonna be asking anyone out to that Halloween Party?” They grinned.

  
I think I'm gonna ask out Cheryl. Y’know her, that cute bird from Chemistry?”  
   
Lou rose an eyebrow in amusement. “Ah, I know her. Quite a looker, aye? Quite a pair of bangers if you ask me. Bet you wanna slide into her DM’s don'tcha?”  
   
The brown- eyes lad blushed a furious dark red. He glared at Lou, who was coyly sipping a root beer with a smug grin tugging their the corner of their lips.  
   
Liam scoffed. “Shut up. How about you and Harry? Gonna get it on behind the Jack O- Lanterns?” He smirked, watching Lou emit a strangled choking noise out of their throat as their soda went down the wrong pipe.  
   
After they had gained back their breath, they removed their hand from their tight throats and hit Liam roughly on the side of his head.  
“Ow! The bloody hell was that for!?” Liam exclaimed, caressing his sore temple and forehead.  
   
“For being a sleazy- ass fuck, you bastard!” Lou chuckled breathlessly. “You have a dirtier mind than I do! It's a Halloween get- together, not a mother- effing porno shoot!”  
   
“What's this about a porno shoot?”  
   
Lou gasped, whipping their head around and let out a choked gasp. “H-Harry! I'm not-! You're not-! Oh God, never mind…” they muttered, hiding their head in their hands.  
   
Harry raised an eyebrow quirkily with a  confused grimace, looking to Liam for answers. “That was strange… Are they alright?”  
   
Liam smirked, scoffing lightly. “Oh, yeah. Lou here’s just being a bit dramatic. Ain't that right, Tomlinson?”

Harry chuckled, looking to his beloved blue- eyed beauty. “Is that true, Love?”

Lou silently gave a two finger salute with their head still down.

Running a large hand through his curls, Harry smiled fondly. He sat down in the cafeteria seat next to Lou, scooting up close and leaned his head in. “So, Lou. I heard you and Liam talking about that… Halloween party in a couple of weeks,” he whispered.

Lou snatched their head up abruptly with wide eyes. “W-What about it?”

Harry tucked a curl behind his ear timidly. “Well, I was wondering… would you maybe wanna go with me? I-It's okay if not. I totally get it. But I just think it'd be really nice if we-”

“Sh,” Lou put a finger to his lips. “Stop talking. Of course I'll go with you, you adorable geek.”

Harry let out a breath of relief. “Okay, good. So, I'll pick you up at 7?”

Lou nodded enthusiastically. “Yeah! Yeah. Sounds great.”

“Cool. So I'll… see you later?” Harry smiled before walking off.

“Y-Yeah…” Lou mumbled after he was out of sight.

“Well, that was something straight out of a movie…” Liam chuckled.

“Yeah… tell me about it.”

“Well, because he came up to you in a rom- com just like in that one-”

Lou snorted in amusement. “You doofus, I love you.”

Liam grinned cheekily. “I know.”

 

 


	14. Baby Don't Hurt Me.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Seriously. Don't kill me. I know updates are hella slow and I'm sorry, really I am. I have no excuse, I'm just being lazy so I'm really sorry. :( don't hate me

“My _goodness_ , Lou’s been up there for a long time,” Jay mumbled. “Fizzy Love, could you start a pot of rice?” She called out, sliding a pan into the oven rack. “What are they _doing_ up there, Lots?”

“Who knows,” Lottie sighed, tucking a strand of light pastel colored hair behind her ear. “They've been up there all day. Said they had some sort of problem to take care of. Something having to do with a date?”

The older brunette’s thin brow arched in curiosity, the corners of her lips curving up to form a sly grin. “Is that so? I'll have them explain that later.”

“Preferably at the dinner table,” Lottie chuckled. “Maybe when the relatives are over?”

“Please,” Jay rolled her eyes teasingly. “Uncle William would only push up his wire- rimmed glasses and say,” she hunched her back and reopened her voice, croaking, “ _‘Oh, that's nice, sunny. You going to the drive in movies?_ ”

Lottie giggled. “Only _you_ , Mum, would make fun of your _own_ in- laws.”

Jay shrugged. “What can I say? It's quite fun to be a clown sometimes.”

Her daughter laughed. “Yeah, tell that to Lou. They could use a bit of humor in their life right now,” she scoffed. “Speaking of which, they should be down by now.”

“Lou, honey! It's dinner time!” Johanna called, slowly chopping some vegetables. Hearing no response, she set down her knife and sighed. “Again. Where are they? I'm- you know what? I'll just go up there myself.” She told to no one is particular.

Walking up the stairs, Jay turned to the hallway and stood in front of Lou’s door. She admired the way they had decorated it, with small pieces vibrantly painted artwork, photos, and the words, ‘Lou’s Room,’ in large cardboard cutout letters. Being aware that this was the room of a teenager, Jay moved the door a couple inches with extreme caution, not knowing what to expect.

She swung the door open to find a very distraught looking Tomlinson thrown across their bed, laying face upwards with their laptop screen open.

“UGH!” Lou groaned irritably, rolling onto their side. “I hate everything!”

Johanna chuckled, making her way over to her dramatic teenager. “Now that must be an exaggeration. You can't hate _everything_ , honey.”

Lou turned their head, barely showing one eye. “Yes I can,” they mumbled.

She smirked in amusement. “What about Louis Vuitton?”

“I…” they started, before sighing. “Well played.”

Jay let out a small sound of approval from her lips, sitting down next to them. “Thats better. Now tell me what's troubling you, sweetheart.”

Lou flipped over, sitting up on their bed. “It's really nothing. It's just that Harry asked me out to a party.”

“That's wonderful, Love!" She said happily. “So what's the problem?”

“The _problem_ is that it's a costume party!” Lou whined.

“So...?” She asked, fading her brows in amusement. 

“So, I have no idea what to do!” Lou exclaimed in frustration. “Do I go cute or scary? Or like, hot? I've literally been looking for hours trying on different makeup crap. My bathroom is a total wreck and I just can't find one that's right!”

Johanna chuckled. “That's all? Honey, that's easy. Here, show me your computer.” They slid it over to her. Pinterest was opened on the screen. “There are plenty of great ideas on here. Like, you could be a superhero?”

“Tacky.”

“You could dress up as a person from the 80s?”

“I already know someone who's doing that.”

Jay stared confusedly. “Really? Who?”

“My Algebra Teacher.”

She smacked them across the head. “Oi, mouth. Anyways, what about a ladybug? Or some sort of animal?”

“Immature. Are there _any_ good ideas there?”

“… You and and Frankie Sandford have very similar hair…”

“Mummm, this isn't _helping_!” Lou whined. “Why does being unique on Halloween have to be so _hard_?”

“Well, if your worried about being _unique_ …” Johanna stood up, walking over to their closet, rummaging around. “Perhaps this really isn't going to be so difficult after all.”

Lou sat up, looking to her in confusion. “What do you mean?”

“Since your big problem is that you want to be different, isn't everyone else trying to do the same thing? Trying _really_ hard to stand out?”

“Yeah, what're you getting at?” They asked, standing up.

“Well, if everyone is trying to be something different, why don't you just go with a classic? Like original?”

Lou smiled. “You're smart, Mum. That's a great idea! In fact… I think I've got a lead…”

Johanna grinned in satisfaction before turning on her heel to leave. “Atta, love!”

*******

“Are you sure it looks alright?” Harry asked in concern.

“Yes, H. It looks _fine_!” Gemma chuckled. “Now stop talking! I'm touching up the cheeks a bit,” she muttered, patting a bit of black face paint on his cheeks bones.

He was wearing an all black tuxedo that showed off his long legs. His hair was tied back in a tight ponytail to keep it out of his face. And his face was painted elaborately to look like a skeleton, his cheeks ones, temples, nose, and jawline were dramatically carved out in black, the rest of the face being pasty white. God, was he lucky that his sister was an expert at makeup.

“Is it done yet? Lou's gonna be here any minute!” Harry whined.

After picking up a bit of translucent power, she got in close with a thin shading brush and muttered, “Hold on, finishing touches… and done!”

**_Ding!_ **

“And perfect timing, too!” She smiled, leaving to answer the door.

Harry gulped in anticipation. He stood behind his older sister, watching closely as she turned the door handle. Too nervous to look, he silently listened to the conversation.

“Oh, you must be Lou, right?”

“Yeah. I'm here to pick Harry up? We're going to party?”

“Ah, right. His mate Ed’s house?”

“Yep. So, is he here?” They asked.

“Yeah, he's hiding behind me because he's scared to-”

“Gem!” Harry whined, popping out from behind. “Shut up!”

“Oh, there you are, Haz!” Lou said, stepping aside, giving a clear view of their face. And holy hell, did they look good.

Lou was dressed as a cat. They wore a flower crown with a headband with felt ears on it, and their hair was curled to perfection. For their makeup, they had a vixen looking cat- eye winged liner look, with long lashes and green contacts that made their pupils thin slits. Their cheeks were dusted with a strawberry pink blush and sparkly highlighter- no contour. Not that they even needed it in the first place. For their lips, the too was painted matte black and the bottom was lined and filled in with a soft pink. For the outfit, they wore an all black outfit consisting of a tank top and leggings under a sleek skirt, as well as some ankle boots and a leather jacket. The last touch was a simple black choker strapped around their neck. Harry practically choked on their own voice.

“Wow, Lou. You look…”

_“Sexy? Hot? Fucking amazing? What am I supposed to say?”_

“Nice.”

_“Seriously?”_

Lou blushed. “You like?” They asked, twirling around.

“Y-Yeah. I, um… lets go?” Harry stammered. _“Damn,”_ he thought. _“I'm being more awkward than usual.”_

“Yeah, lets,” the smiled, taking his hand.

Gemma watched as they walked over to what she assumed to be Lou’s car and sighed fondly.

“Young love.”


	15. Ooh Der is tEh fitings

“Ay, greetings and salutations!” Ed exclaimed. “Kitchen’s upstairs. Party's juts getting started!”

“Thanks,” the blonde grinned, walking away, the heels of her shoes click- clacking as she stepped.

“ _Nice_ ,” he smiled to himself. He took another sip of his beer before the doorbell rang once again. He opened it to see an adorable couple dressed as a skeleton and a cat.

“Ah, Harry! It's been too long, mate!” Ed called out, engulfing him in a tight hug. After pulling away, he looked to Lou. “Who's the special someone?”

Lou blushed. Harry stepped in for them, saying, “This is my partner, Lou.”

“Ah, so you're Lou? I've heard a thing or two about ya. Come on in!” Ed welcomed them in, closing the door behind them.

Harry and Lou walked off, the house buzzing with excitement. They were surrounded by drunk high schoolers in all sorts of different costumes. Girls in short skirts, guys in creepy masks, and then the small percentage of students who decided to be decent human beings and not scar people for life.

“Ay, the cavalry’s here!” Liam exclaimed, his hand around Cheryl’s waist. He was dressed as Batman, of course. And Cheryl was in a modest Batgirl shirt and leggings with a black mask painted on and around her eyes.

“Well _hello,_ Batman,” Harry chuckled.

Liam waved him off. “You wanna know my secret identity? Haha! Anyways, welcome! You two look smashing.”

Lou smiled. “Thanks,” turning to Cheryl, they raised an eyebrow skeptically. “So you're the one dating my best mate, huh?”

Cheryl blushed. “Uh… yeah?”

They pouted un an unimpressed manor. “Hmph. Okay, whatever. I just need to know one thing- Is Kim’s ass real?”

Cheryl scoffed. “Are you kidding me? Of course not.”

Lou seemed satisfied with that answer. “ _Hm_. Well played. I guess you're alright,” they smiled.

Liam and Cheryl grinned confusedly, chuckling to themselves. Harry broke the silence, looking around. “So… this is fun? I love parties. Especially Ed’s. Everyone's just so nice!” He gushed.

Cheryl nodded. “Yeah… if not for the plenty of bitches trying to ruin everyone's night and steal everyone's man.”

Liam nodded. “I know who you mean. But let's try not to focus on them.”

Harry quirked an eyebrow confusedly. “Huh? That's not very nice. Nobody here's _that_ bad.”

Lou swung a protecting arm around Harry's waist. “Oh, Harry. Pure cinnamon roll froggie prince of my dreams, Harry,” they shook their head back and forth, ignoring Harry's confused expression. “You don't understand, do you. _Everyone_ here is trying to sleep with _everyone_. It's only a wonder no irrelevant rando bitch has tried to make a move on you.”

Harry rolled his eyes. “Oh, come on, no one here is really that b-”

“Hey, Harry!” A high pitched voice squealed. Lou turned their head to see two brunettes and a tall blonde approaching. They all wore tall heels and skirts that were much too short for their liking.

Cheryl groaned, rolling her eyes. “Oh _god_ ,” she mumbled to herself. Leaning over to Liam, she whispered, “And speaking of which… here come the Heathers.”

The blonde skipped over to Harry, throwing a hand around his shoulder. “Hey, people! You were looking kind of bored over here. Thought I'd step in and get the party started!”

Cheryl put a hand on her hip. “Well, well, _well_. If it isn't Regina George herself. Shouldn't you be on your private jet right about now?”

The blonde sneered. “Huh. Cheryl Cole. Haven't seen you in a while. What brought you back from the dead and out of your home in the sewers? Another garage sale?” The two brunettes behind her giggled.

One of them piped up, “Yeah, I think-!”

“Shut up, _Eleanor_ ,” the blonde snapped. “And anyways, you should be going. The garbage man is gonna be here any minute. Don't you have somewhere else to be?”

“Wouldn't you like to know. I thought you didn't talk to Greasers like _me_ , Taylor.”

The blonde- _Taylor_ scoffed. “Please, like I'm here for _you_. I'm just coming over to say hi to a couple cute guys. Like Henry over here, isn't that right?” She smiled, staring at Harry.

“Um… Actually, I’m-”

“Taken. He's taken. _You_ , on the other hand, will be going now.”

Taylor snapped her head around to stare at Lou, who had both hands on their hips. She looked them up and down judgmentally.

“I'm sorry, who are you? Jeffrey Starr?” She chuckled smugly.

“If by that, you mean I look fucking sexy 24/7, then _yes_. I also happen to be Harry’s partner. So _fuck off_ ,” they sneered.

Taylor scoffed. “Excuse me? I'm pretty sure that he's not a _pansy_ like you,” she said, pointing at Harry, who gasped. “Now why don't you go kill yourself and lay off my new man, okay?”

Lou laughed mockingly. “ _Your new man_? Please. He's mine. Now why don't you turn those heels around before I drag you by your crop top from Forever 21 to the slut section of Von Maur.”

“ _Excuse_ me!?” She screeched, glaring at Lou’s satisfied grin. “Ugh! W-Well why don't we ask _Harry_ how he feels knowing he's stuck with an airhead like you!”

“An airhead like _me_! Speak for yourself, asshat!”

“Asshat? If I'm an _asshat_ than you're-”

“ _Perfect_ ,” Harry piped in, throwing a hand around Lou’s curvy waist. “Now we should be going. Cheryl? Liam? Shall we?

Taylor gaped. “W-What…? You're, you're actually…”

Harry nodded, pressing a quick but meaningful kiss to Lou’s cheekbone.

Her mouth hung open in shock. “I-I… ugh! Whatever,” she mumbled, turning on her heel. She stomped away in annoyance, the two brunettes hesitating.

The taller one stretched out her hand, saying, “Sorry about her. She's kind of… _insensitive_ sometimes. I'm Danielle.”

“Eleanor,” she shorter one smiled. “So your-”

“COME _ON_!”

“Uh, we gotta go…” Danielle stammered, before running off after Taylor.

“Sweet girls I'm sure…” Liam said, rubbing his arms a bit awkwardly.

“Yeah, is except for that Taylor bitch…” Lou muttered irritably.

“Aw, Lou. It's not her fault she-”

“Hey, did anyone hear that?” Cheryl interrupted. “It, it sounded like someone yelling!”

“Really? I don't think-.”

“Wait, wait, wait! I hear it too,” Liam said, walking over to the balcony. As he looked over the dye to peer at the floor beneath him, he gasped. “Guys, there's a _fight_ going on!”

“Seriously?” Cheryl exclaimed, running to his side. The others followed quickly. “Oh my goodness! It's bloody _warfare_ down there!”

“Oh my _god_.. I hope it's not too serious. I think-”

“Hold on… it looks like,” Lou muttered to themself, trying to get a better view of the brawl. “Holy shit! It's _Niall_! And Zayn! Niall and Zayn are fighting! Oh fucking shit!” They screeched before tumbling their way down the stairs, ignoring the confused callings from behind as the others followed.

As they made their way through the large crowd that had gathered, Lou was able to get a clear view of the fight. Niall and Zayn, both tipsy but not yet drunk, we're throwing punches and kicks, Zayn having Niall in a headlock. Both their faces were red and angry. It looked really serious.

“You _fucking idiot_! I hate you, I hate you, I fucking _hate_ you!” Zayn yelled.

“Zayn, you prick! Let me fucking go!” Niall shrieked, socking the Pakistaní man in the gut, freeing himself. They squared up, ready to lunge. “I thought we were mates!”

“We were, until I found out you were a mother fucking homo!” Zayn screamed. Lou gasped, preparing themself to butt in, but a large hand stopped them. Harry looked to them with a worried expression.

“What is wrong with you!?” The Irishman cried out in anger. “So you're gonna try to fuck me up just because I'm not straight!”

“Because you're a fag!” Zayn yelled. “You're fucking weak! You're a piece of shit! Just like _him_!” He pointed at Lou.

“Lou has _nothing_ to do with this! In fact, _they_ were even more accepting that you ever were!” Niall yelled, tears building up in his eyes.

“Aw, what's wrong!? You gonna cry you fucking _faggot_!” Zayn sneered.

“No, I'm just getting started you fucking homophobic asshole!” Niall screamed, lunging for Zayn and punching him square in the jaw. The crowd was hysterical. Some were upset. Others were laughing. But everyone was fixated on the two lads’ every movement.

“FUCK YOU!” Zayn yelled, punching Niall to the ground. The blonde was stuck on the floor in a heap, Zayn kicking him over and over again. “FUCK! YOU! GAY! PIECE! OF! SHIT! I’LL KILL YOU, I’LL _FUCKING_ -”

“STOP! STOP YOU PRICK, STOP IT RIGHT NOW!” Lou screamed, running to separate the two. They shoved Zayn aside with all of their strength, pulling Niall off the floor.“THAT IS ENOUGH!” They swung their arm around Niall’s torso to support him. The poor Irishman had a black eye, multiple bruises and a bloody nose. The hazel- eyed man got up from the ground and attempted to hit Niall out of Lou’s arms. Before he could, his best friend Perrie grabbed him arm and held him back.

“Perrie! Let me go!” Zayn panted.

“N-No!” She grunted, struggling to keep him still. “Stop this! Zayn, you need to stop! P-Please!” She cried out, as he slowly calmed down, and his breaths slowly softened. Once she was sure that he was finally calm enough, she let him go, and stepped back into the silent crowd.

There were three people standing in the center of the floor. Lou, who was holding Niall up, and Zayn, standing a far distance away. There was a long moment of silence.

“Niall, what the fuck _is_ this?” Zayn, whispered with a shaky breath. “W-Why would you tell me?” There were tears collecting near the brim of his eyes.

“Niall…” Lou whispered to him. “Niall, you-” they were cut off as Niall shrugged them away, slowly approaching Zayn. “Niall, w-!”

Everybody went silent as Niall crashed his lips into Zayn’s.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hoooo dam dam dam da-doo-da-dum-dAyUm


	16. I’m listening To Spanish music rn.

Niall crashed his lips into Zayn’s. Everyone gasped. Some in horror, some in shock, some in excitement. Regardless, the whole crowd stood silent.

At first, it seemed as if Zayn was frozen, he didn’t move, he didn’t kiss back, but… he didn’t push away. He simply stood there like a statue. His hands shook violently and his eyes were blown wide. His chest heaved up and down and his legs felt like jello while he struggled to not let them give out limply under him.

Cheryl and Liam clung to each other anxiously waiting for a reaction. Harry was chewing his nails so much that there were only painful red nubs left of the tips of his fingers. Lou hid their head in their hands, afraid of a certain outcome. An outcome that would no doubt involve black eyes, bloody noses fractures bones, and broken hearts.

Niall’s heart was beating a million times a minute. He could feel the beat pounding through his temples. As he noticed Zayn’s lack of response, he started to worry that maybe this wasn’t the right choice.

" _Oh shit_ ," he thought. " _Have I completely fucked myself? What the hell is wrong with me, I’m kissing my best friend! And... and my crush since forever. Fuck, I... I’ve waited for this for so long... if this fails I don’t know what I’ll-"_

“Lou!” Harry whispered, shaking their shoulder. “He’s kissing back! Look up, look up, look up!”

Lou gasped, looking up nervously. _"Harry better not be shitting me or I swear I am going to- HOLY FUCKING SHIT!"_

Yes, it was true. Zayn had his arm wrapped around Niall’s neck and the two lads' lips moved together. Zayn had a slight blush coating his cheeks, and Niall's eyes fluttering closed as their bodies rubbed up against each other, the kiss deepening.

"Holy _shit_!" Lou whisper-yelled.

The two kissed for about thirty seconds or so before pulling apart and staring lustfully into each other's eyes.

"Oh my god," Zayn whispered breathlessly. "That was..."

" _Amazing_ ," Niall smiled hopefully.

"M-Maybe... it might just have been," Zayn blushed.

"Are we still okay?" Niall asked shakily. "Like, like is this okay?"

"What... what do you mean?"

Niall chuckled nervously. He anxiously took a deep breath. "Zayn, I don’t want this to be typical."

"What do you mean?" He asked.

Niall gulped anxiously. "Zayn, I like you. Like I really do _like_ you."

"I know..." Zayn muttered softly.

"And as more than mates. If it isn’t already obvious, I really want to _be_ with you. I want to be more," Niall frowned.

B-But my dad. He'll-!"

"He doesn’t have to know," Niall raised a tender hand to Zayn's cheekbone. "Nobody has to know, not your dad, not your mom, your family, my family, _nobody_ has to know!" He pleaded desperately. "Please, Zayn! I _know_ you! I know you’re not really homophobic like you seem to be! Your parents can’t control you forever! I’ve wanted this for so fucking long! I’ve come so fucking far! I did not come to this party to be turned down! I did _not_ invite you here just to watch you kiss another air headed girl in front of me! Please, please don’t you dare fucking leave me alone!" Niall exclaimed, his voice slowly raising as he spoke.

Zayn was taken aback by this sudden yelling. "N-Ni..."

"Please, Zayn. Let’s get out of here. Talk things out. We'll come to an understanding," he said in a soothing voice, taking Zayn’s hand in his. "Come on. Let’s go."

Zayn hesitated for a moment. This could change everything. He could get beaten up. He could get taunted. He could get rejected. He could get thrown out of his own home!

But... seeing the desperation and pure love shining in Niall’s eyes, the Pakistani wrapped his hand around Niall's and followed his out the door. Leaving the rest of the students to gape in awe, with wide eyes. There were a couple whispers among the crows, but besides that, it was silent.

...

"Fuck. Well, ain’t _that_ a kick in the ass!" Ed exclaimed suddenly. And very loudly, I might add. The crowd doubled over with laughter. He grinned charismatically. "Hah. Now, while we leave the cuties to work out their new found love, I believe we had a party going on?"

The crows roared with excitement as the cliques disbanded. The only ones left together were Lou, Harry, Liam, and Cheryl.

"Holy shit... _that_ just happened," Cheryl muttered in shock. The rest nodded in agreement. "So... what now?"

"You know what we do now, Cheryl?" Lou spoke up,

"What?" Harry asked.

Lou smirked mischievously. "We mother- fucking _party_!" They exclaimed, pumping a fist in the air. The rest cheered in excitement, heading to the kitchen to drink like the end of the world.

********

"Uhhh," Lou groaned, leaning over the toilet. They gagged yet again as they emptied contents of their stomach into the bowl once again. "Oh, god. Oh my _god_. Fuck..."

Lottie rubbed their back in an attempt to soothe them through the pain. "My _goodness_ , Lou. How much did you have to drink last night?"

"I... I think- Oh God!" They were cut off as they painfully retched into the porcelain once again. "I stopped counting after ten."

"Ten? Ten _what_?" Lottie arched her brow in confusion. "Ten _sips_ or..." she trailed off.

Lou swallowed dryly. "No... ten shots."

"LOU! Ten shots!?" She exclaimed. "You downed ten shots of tequila?"

"N-No... Ten shots of vodka."

"LOU!" She screamed in exasperation.

"Lottie," they replied dryly.

"You drank ten shots of vodka!?" She yelled. "Your _barely_ drinking age! You could have _died_!"

"I-I didn’t... I-!" They gagged, vomiting once again. They shivered violently, clutching the seat until their knuckles turned white.

Lottie cringed and the painful retching noise. "You know, I have a slight feeling this might be a bit more than just an intense hangover. You’re shaking like a _leaf_."

"F-Fuck..." they stammered, cradling their arms close to their chest. They were suddenly were very pale. They felt a cold touch and shied away as Lottie placed her palm upon their forehead.

"Shit, Lou. You have a fever! Get your sorry ass back to bed and rest!" She exclaimed, wrapping a protective arm around their waist and walked them to bed.

"Loooots," they groaned. "I can’t stay in bed all _day_... Harry's coming o-"

_**Ding Dong!** _

"Humph. _Speaking_ of which..." Lottie smiled playfully. "Shall I let him in?"

"The _fuck_ , no!" They screeched. "Don’t send him!-"

" _Lou_ , honey! You’re friend Harry's here! Should I send him up!?" They heard Johanna yell from downstairs.

" _MUMM_! I-"

"Hey, you’re Lou's sister, right?"

"Yeah, I’m Lottie, pleased to meet you," Lottie smiled, shaking Harry’s hand. "Harry, I presume?"

"Mhm," she nodded. "Lou’s feeling s bit under the weather today, and someone needs to take care of them. The thing _is_..." Lottie smirked, looking over her shoulder at Lou, who was mouthing the word 'no' desperately. " _I’m_ meeting with a classmate in fifteen minutes for coffee. And our _Mum's_ out shopping all day. So... Would you be up for the job, mate?"

Harry beamed that ridiculously beautiful smile of his. Goddamn. He spoke, "Of course!"

Lou groaned, which soon turned into coughing. _"Fuck,"_ they thought to themselves. _"Isn’t this the most pathetic thing you’ve ever seen. The poor, sick protagonist lets taken care of by their high school sweetheart. Please."_

Harry sat down on the edge of Lou's mattress. "How are you feeling, Lou? Your sister told me you were sick."

"Pfff. I don’t get si- _Hetchiew_!" They let out a tiny sneeze into their fist, then sighed.

"Haha. _Sure_ ," Harry grinned in sympathy, passing them a tissue from the bed side table. Lou took it graciously. "Now, you’re gonna stay here while I make you a cuppa, okay?"

Lou smiled gratefully. "That’d be great," they said, watching lovingly as Harry walked out the door.

_"Hm. Maybe a high school school sweetheart wouldn’t be too bad."_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am a despicable human being.


	17. Are We Okay?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DISCLAIMER:: this is in no way supposed to be offensive to anyone with bipolar disorder. I know I exaggerated the effects of it a lot. I personally have bipolar disorder, but I’m sorry if I offended anyone.

"Lou?"

"Yeah, Mum?"

"Are you sure you want to go to school today? You _were_ pretty sick on Saturday."

"Course! I’m feelin' much better today," they assured her. "I’m sure."

Johanna smiled kindly. "I’m glad you are, sweetheart! That Harry boy took care of you _quite_ well, didn’t he? So smitten. Humph. Quite a good lad, ain’t he?"

Lou blushed, a fond expression on their face. "Yeah. Good lad, good lad. Nice little body, Yeah. Nice little-" they caught themself before blushing madly. "F-Fuck. I... that wasn’t supposed t-to. Shit, um. Never mind."

Jay smirked. " _Mhmm_... I’m giving you thirty seconds to get out of here before I give you the talk, child."

Lou's eyes widened in shock. "Oh my god! Wait, I’m sorry I didn’t!-"

"29..."

"But I-"

"28..."

"Alright, alright I'll go, _Jesus_!!" They screeched, running out the door swiftly. "Bye, Mum! See you later!"

Johanna chuckled to herself. "Teenagers. Ah, to be young."

********

"Hey, you’re alive!" Liam exclaimed jokingly. "When you called Sunday you sounded like you were dying a slow painful _death_."

"Yeah, I know right? I felt like the girl from the ring. And to think that it was all because of that dumbass party," Lou rolled their eyes playfully. "Huh. That being said, it was _so_ worth it. Going to the party."

Liam nodded. "Mhmm. How _did_ you get sick by the way?"

"Hanging out with too many people I guess? One of those bitches must have gotten me sick," they frowned.

"Ah, I see. Well, there _were_ a hell lot of people. That was quite the night, wasn’t it?"

"Totally. Especially the part when-"

Lou stopping talking, suddenly feeling a strong hand on their shoulder. At first, they assumed it was Harry and the beginning of a smile crept onto their face. However, seeing the startled and slightly frightened expression that Liam was giving, it gave them to impression that it may not be who they’d expected. They turned their head to face none other than...

"Z-Zayn," they whispered in fear. "Holy shit. I-I’m _really_ sorry! I wasn’t-"

"Stop. Don’t apologize," he commanded. Lou shut their mouth immediately. "I need to talk to you."

"O-Okay..." Lou stammered, shuffling their feet awkwardly. "About what?"

Zayn grabbed their hand. "Come with me." So with that, he dragged them to an empty hallway, looking around twice, then three times to make sure no one was there.

"S-So... what did you want to talk about...?" They asked anxiously, hands folded behind their back. They bit their lip so hard it almost drew blood.

Zayn noticed the nervousness on their expression. "Hey, hey, _stop_. It’s fine. _You’re_ fine. Don’t be scared. I’m not gonna do anything," he reassured them.

Lou let out a deep sigh. "Fuck, sorry. I’m just- _sorry_. Okay, em... Thank you. So... What did you want to talk about?"

Zayn pressed his lips together. "I wanted to apologize, Lou. I-I’m _really_ sorry."

"Sorry?" Lou quirked a brow in confusion. "For what?"

Zayn gulped, taking a deep breath in. "Look. I-I know I’ve been kind of a dick to you. Ever since we... you know," Lou nodded, remembering the previous turn of events. "Anyways, I’m really sorry. I didn’t want it to happen this way. I just- fuck." He took in a shaky breath.

Lou stared to him confusedly. "Why are you telling me this? What makes you change your mind about everything _now_? Why are you suddenly turning around?"

Zayn blinked back tears. "F-Fuck. I don’t want you to think of me like that. I don’t want you to think that I’m some sort of monster. I want to make it up to you. You’ve already gone through so much shit. And I don’t want to be the one to have to add to that anymore. I was a dick. I was a jerk. It’s stupid. All of the things I did to you. I-It’s not... Fuck. Oh my god. I’m so _sorry_ ," Zayn whimpered. He tried to blink back the tears.

"Z-Zayn. Shit. F-Fuck, Stop. _Please_ stop. You don’t have to apologize. It’s okay, it’s fine," Lou assured him, exasperated.

"Look. I-I have problems. There’s a lot wrong with me right now. And I really _really_ am sorry about everything I’ve done. I-I’m not _normal_ ," Zayn informed them shakily.

"Not normal? What... What does that mean?" Lou asked warily.

"I’m kind of... bipolar?" Zayn said, almost forming it like a question.

"...What?" Lou murmured.

"Bipolar. I have bipolar disorder," he repeated, his tone hardening dramatically. "What? What do you _think_ of it, Lou?"

"Huh? I mean... it’s fine. It’s okay? It’s normal?" Lou questioned.

"Yeah, Yeah, it’s _normal_? It’s fine, it’s okay!? You don’t have a _problem_ with it? You’re not _disturbed_!!?" He asked pointedly, raising his voice, seemingly getting angrier.

"What? N-No! Zayn, calm down!" Lou whimpered.

"Calm down!!? I’m sorry, am I scaring you!? Are you intimidated by me? Fuck! Do you want to kill me? Do you hate me, Lou!? Huh? Do you!? WELL? _SAY_ SOMETHING!" He cried, approaching closer.

"Kill you! What the hell are you _talking_ about!?" Lou screamed back, slowly stepping backwards. "I don’t hate you, Zayn! It’s okay!"

"No! It’s not okay! You should _hate_ me!" He screamed, tears streaming down their face. "Why don’t you hate me? Why aren’t you mad at me!?"

"Stop crying! I’m not fucking _mad_!" Lou screamed back, tears pricking in the corners of their eyes. "I'm not-"

"Not mad!!? YOU TRIED TO _KILL YOURSELF_ BECAUSE OF ME!" Zayn slapped his hand across his mouth in fear.

Lou's eyes widened dramatically. Their hands started to shake, and their mouth dropped open. Their face was a pasty white.

There was a long, long couple minutes where neither said a word. They only stared at each other in complete awe and regret.

"L-Lou..."

_Pills. Blood. Bandages._

"Fuck. I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to say that."

_The hospital. Dad._

"Lou, are you okay?"

_No. No, no, no._

"Lou?"

" _WHAT_!!?" Lou screamed, making Zayn wince at their volume.

"You were... being really quiet and you were shaking, it something wrong? I’m so sorry for bringing it up, I didn’t mean to," he apologized.

"No, no it’s okay. I forgive you," Lou sighed. "It’s just... sometimes I forget, you know?"

"Mhmm," Zayn murmured in understanding. "Anyways, I’m really sorry for turning on you like that. I’m starting therapy next week, and my mum thinks it’ll help."

"That’s good, thats... that’s really good!" Lou smiled.

"So then... are we okay?" Zayn asked hesitantly.

"Yeah. I think we are," Lou grinned shyly. They shook hands and parted ways. As they mindlessly wandered the halls, Lou’s mind started to wander. Wander back to that day.

*********

_It wasn’t like a normal day, I could tell you that much._

_Dad had just come back from another night out. And to our delight, he came back drunk and was having another episode. Mum and Dad seemed to fight a lot these days, but we never saw it happen. We could only hear. My sisters and I were cowering in the corner of my room, listening fearfully to the floor down below. If we sat down low enough, we could barely make out some of the conversation._

_"How many times are you going to come back drunk!? I’m sick of you hurting me and my children with your abusive behavior! This has to stop!"_

_"Our children, baby. I don’t wanna stop," he slurred. "C'mon, let’s go to the bedroom and talk things out-"_

_"NO! I’m done with you! I’m done with you and your stupid games, you getting drunk or high every night, your endless cheating, and you think you can fix everything by trying to win me over with your huge-"_

_They we heard a large smacking sound as mother was cut off._

_I got curious and told my sisters to stay where they were as I went to investigate. When I came downstairs, I hid behind a table and watched the scene unfold. Mum had a huge red handprint on her cheek, and was crying. I wanted to help, but by now I knew better._

_There was a long period of silence before the yelling started up once again._

_"That’s it! I’ve given you enough second chances! I want you out of this house immediately. I want you to take your things, and get as far away from us as possible!" She screeched._

_"Fine, you bitch! I’ll be on my way! But don’t come running back to me when you’re poor single and alone!"_

_I watched fearfully as he approached the table I was hiding under. He saw me, then scowled._

_"D-Dad...?" I stammered. Mum gasped in horror._

_"I’m not your dad, you faggot. I hope you and your mother kill your selves."_

_I started to cry. He knew I was struggling with depression. He knew I was suicidal. Why would he say something like that!?_

_After that night, I never saw him again. But his words corrupted my mind every following day._

_It was only a month later when I was walking down the hall. I was having a shitty day and didn’t know how it could get much worse._

_And then Zayn approached._

_"Well, if it isn’t poor little Louis," he taunted me. Back then I hadn’t changed my name yet._

_"Leave me alone," I spat at him._

_"Leave you alone? What, like when your Dad left you?"_

_I stopped. I felt tears forming in my eyes. I was about to take a strike at him, but he caught me first, pinning me up against a locker._

_"You’re nobody," he whispered. "You’re useless. You’re a faggot, a loser, and a freak. Go kill your self."_

_I whispered under his grasp, before he threw me onto the ground. I slowly got up and muttered,_

_"Fine. Maybe I will."_

_That night I had decided I’d had enough. I overdosed. I cut my wrists. The next morning I woke up in a hospital. Started therapy. I didn’t get to go back to school until two weeks later. And frankly, I didn’t want to..._


	18. The Boat is About to Sink

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Forgive me forgive me forgive me

"So... My house this weekend, Baby?" Lou smiled, walking down the hallway at the end of the day.

Harry shrugged. "I’m free. But what about the sibs?"

"Lottie's at a friend's house, Fizzy and the four twins are having a Mum's day for out. So, we’ll have Saturday _all to ourselves."_

Harry chuckled. "Really? You sure you aren’t getting sick of me yet?

"Seriously? If anything, I just can’t get enough of you," Lou growled playfully, running a hand through their boyfriend's beautiful hair.

Harry blushed madly, his face completely bright red. "I- um... you-you’re enough, you?" He stammered.

Lou giggled in amusement. "Oh my god, you are _too_ fucking cute."

"Speak for yourself, little 5'9-"

"Wait, did you hear that?" Lou piped up. "Sounded like... like yelling?"

"Yelling?" Harry questioned. "I’m not sure... maybe it-"

"YOU MOTHERFUCKER!"

" _Shit_!" Lou exclaimed, hearing it once more. "It’s another fight! Cmon, let’s go!" They ran off towards the outside where the yelling was coming from.

"Again!? Why does this always happen-"

"Come on, LET'S _GO_!" Lou whined, forcefully grabbing Harry’s wrist, running at full speed. They came to an abrupt stop once they found a huge raging crowd gathered in the courtyard. Lou caught a glimpse of the shitty blonde hair and could only assume it was Taylor _Fucking_ Swift. Not a surprise, seeing as she seemed to get into an argument every other day.

However... there was another girl there. She had curly brown hair and was cursing like a sailor. They could only catch a small view of her face.

"Danielle...?"

_Oh shit._

"SERIOUSLY, What is _wrong_ with this school! First Niall and Zayn, Harry, and now _you_! Honestly, I just _can’t_!" Taylor groaned. "Like, is there anyone here who _isn’t_ gay!?"

"What the _hell_ is your problem!?" Danielle screamed back. "Why can’t you just accept that not _everyone_ is like you!"

"It doesn’t matter that everyone is like _me_ , just as long as they’re not like YOU!" Taylor pointed offensively.

"Like _me_?" Danielle seethed with rage. "Would you like to _elaborate_ on that a bit?"

"I don’t even know what that means," Taylor grunted. "If you’re gonna even _attempt_ to insult me, you should at least do it in English!"

"Goddamn, you’re even dumber than you look," Dani growled.

The blonde gasped dramatically, whimpering in anger. "Dumb!? DUMB? You’re calling _me_ DUMB!? You know what's DUMB? Two girls fucking each other, in front of the MOTHER FUCKING WILL OF _GOD_!!" The crowd gasped in shock.

" _EXCUSE_ ME!!?" Danielle screeched in rage. "WHAT KIND OF SHIT IS _THAT_ SUPPOSED TO MEAN!!?"

"IT _MEANS_ , MAYBE IF YOU HAD SPENT A LITTLE MORE TIME PRAYING, AND A LITTLE LESS TIME SINNING, YOU WOULDN'T HAVE TURNED OUT TO BE SUCH A _FAG_!!" She screamed, sticking her middle finger up.

Danielle gasped, her face red. Her eyes glazed over, before she took a step foreword, she and Taylor only a few feet apart. "A fag, huh? Aw, you poor poor rich _bitch_. Perhaps you should take Daddy's Porsche for one last test run, AND DRIVE OFF A FUCKING CLIFF!"

"JESUS FUCKING CHRIST! _YOU_ NEED JESUS! SHIT, IS THERE ANYONE ELSE HERE A FUCKING _HOMOSEXUAL_!!? ANYONE ELSE HERE WANT TO ' _COME OUT_ '? HUH!? FUCKING _SHOW_ YOURSELF!" Taylor let out a blood curdling scream.

The crowd went silent. Lou briefly scanned the crowd. Surely she wasn’t serious. No one was going to step up. Everyone was too-

"Shut up, Taylor."

Taylor's face turned dark red, as she scooped out who said it. "Who the _fuck_ said that?"

Eleanor stepped in front of the crowd. She took a shaky breath in. "I-I said, shut up. No one needs to hear your opinion, so s-shut the fuck up, b-bitch."

Taylor stepped away from Danielle. She slowly walked up to Eleanor, who was quivering in fear, but tried to look tough. She kept approaching until they were only inches apart.

"So, you’re a _faggot_ , huh?"

Eleanor gulped anxiously. She nodded toughly.

**_SMACK!_ **

Everyone went silent.

Eleanor clutched her red cheek painfully. She shook madly, tears streaming down her face. She whimpered, running off down the hallways, out of sight.

Taylor's hand was still suspended in the air.

Danielle's eyes were wide as saucers.

"YOU FUCKING PSYCHO! BITCH! WHAT THE HELL IS _WRONG_ WITH YOU!!?" Danielle screamed. "YOU ARE FUCKING INSANE. ITS NO WONDER EVERYONE IN THIS SCHOOL IS AFRAID OF YOU, SNAKE!" She then ran off in a different direction.

Taylor seethed with rage, walking away from the crowd without a word.

Slowly, the crowd dismembered, everyone eventually walked away. All that was left was Harry and Lou.

"Holy shit..." Lou gaped. "I...I was _not_ expecting _that_."

Harry nodded. He turned to Lou and looked to them with concern. "We should talk to them."

" _Them_? Talk to who?"

"Danielle and Eleanor, just to make sure they’re doing okay. I bet they’re a bit shaken up..." Harry frowned.

Lou smiled fondly. "You’re so _caring_. I’ll take Eleanor?"

"And I’ll get Danielle."

Harry leaned down to give Lou a quick kiss on the cheek, and they walked away.

*******

Harry found Danielle surprisingly fast. The first place he had thought to look was the girl's bathroom. As soon as he reached the entrance, he heard soft weeping. He entered cautiously, his face blushing bright red. He knocked on the last stall- the biggest one. "... Danielle?"

He heard a soft gasp, and some sniffling. There was a brief moment before the stall slowly opened, revealing Danielle, her eyes red and swollen, showing that she had obviously been crying.

"W-What are you doing here? What do you want...?" She asked, her voice gravelly and rough.

"I... just wanted to make sure you were doing okay," Harry shrugged.

"I’m doing _fine_ , thank you very much. Now _get out,_ " she snapped fiercely, wincing at how harsh it had come out.

Harry sighed softly. "I’m sorry. Look, I... I know it’s not any of my business, but... do you maybe want to talk about it? I can only assume that you have a lot on your mind."

Danielle was about to tell him to fuck off, but the sincere look that he gave her filled her with a sense of comfort. She cautiously let him inside the stall. There was just enough room for both of them to sit comfortably on the floor.

She sighed sadly. "Jesus, where do I _start_? Okay. Well, it’s no secret that everyone questions their sexuality at some point in their life, right?" She looked to him for validation, he nodded in agreement.

"Yeah. Well, I went through that freshman year. I didn’t have a boyfriend or any other friends besides Taylor and Eleanor. Taylor and I had just met. She took us in as her...accomplices? At the time it had seemed like a good idea. El and I had been invisible. I regret it all now, but it was what we wanted I guess. Eleanor and I had been best friends since middle school. I knew she was pretty. Sometimes I was even jealous of her. Eventually... I don’t know when it happened, but I... I just really started to like her. As much, _much_ more than a friend.

"There were multiple occasions when I wanted to tell her. But I knew it could never happen. Taylor would _never_ agree. There was no way it could happen. But the longer I had to hide my feelings for her, the stronger they grew. I fell in love with her. Whether I wanted to admit it or not...

"El is just so sweet and beautiful and she deserves the world but...she could _never_ love me," Danielle sniffed, tears collected in her eyes once again. "N-Now she knows and I don’t know what to do..." she started to weep. Harry wrapped his string arms around her , whispering words of comfort in her ear. She only sobbed harder. "She’ll h-hate me. What have I done? What have I _done_!?" She cried.

"Hey. Hey, wait. No," Harry stared her straight in the eyes. "That won’t happen. She will _not_ hate you. You saw what happened. She doesn’t agree with Taylor. She’s not straight. You _have_ a shot. So take it," he smiled.

Danielle stared, grinning in appreciation. "T-Thank you. _Thank you so much._ I need to go talk with her. Maybe we can sort everything out."

Harry nodded. "That sounds like a great idea. C'mon, let’s go find her. I’ll go with you."

Danielle smiled widely. She jumped up happily and engulfed Harry in a tight hug.

Harry gasped in surprise, but so only afterwards, he smiled. This was going to be a good day.

*******

Lou walked the halls, searching left and right for Eleanor. They eventually spotted her alone in the cafeteria with a pile of half-eaten chocolate chip cookie boxes by her side. She was whimpering, chocolate on the corners of her mouth.

They approached slowly, as if she was a small animal afraid of scaring her away. "...Eleanor?"

She looked up from her lap. She gasped, throwing an empty box at them. "Go away! Leave me alone!" She whined sadly.

Lou deflected the boxes with their hands. "Hey, hey, I’m sorry. I’m just passing by."

El frowned. "What do you want?" She grunted.

Lou frowned. "I just wanted to see if you were okay. After the whole... _thing_ earlier."

Eleanor let out a sad sigh. She picked up another cookie, before throwing in in front of her. "I shouldn’t be eating so much. Taylor always said I needed to lose weight..."

Lou looked at her with confusion. They saw down next to her, though she didn’t look them in the eyes. "You know, you don’t have to do _everything_ Taylor says, Eleanor. You _are_ your own person."

She frowned. "I... I _have_ to. It’s been like that as long as I remember. Taylor’s always right. About fashion, boys, friends, and... and _sexuality_."

Eleanor sighed. "I don’t know what happened. I’m so scared. I didn’t want this to happen!" She whimpered, starting to tear up. "It started like a normal day and then everyone started yelling and fighting and pushing. I don’t know what’s going on...

"At first it started out as just another one of Taylor's fights. I try not to be around for those. They put me so on edge. Usually I just get Danielle to distract me when she’s yelling and arguing. We go shopping or do homework or something. But this time I couldn’t f-find her.

"I looked _everywhere_. But I couldn’t find her anywhere. I was about to head to the library, but I walked by the cafeteria and heard Danielle yelling at Taylor. Out of curiosity, I walked in, right when Taylor started yelling at Dani for being g-gay. I tried to blend in with the crowd, afraid that one of them would see me and get even angrier than they already were. Then suddenly Taylor said the bit about if anyone else was gay...

"I don’t know what was going through my mind, I blanked out. I stepped up, then she hit me, and now I’m here."

Lou was shocked. They didn’t expect her to open up so quickly, and it was a lot of information to process. "Eleanor-"

She turned to them abruptly. " _Please_ help me. I don’t know what to do! I’m so fricking _scared. I’m so scared_..." she whimpered.

Lou frowned with concern. "Eleanor, it’s fine. I know it’s scary but there’s-"

"I can’t be gay, Lou! I just _can’t_! It’s not right, everyone will hate me!" She cried. "Please help me. Help me! I c-can’t... _I can’t breathe-_ it’s not right!" She started to hyperventilate.

"Woah, _woah_ , Eleanor calm down! Just breathe..." Lou tried to coax her into relaxation. However, she only sobbed harder.

"Please, Lou! I can’t do this! I can’t take this!" She yelped. "I need you to help me! I need to be fixed! Can I-

" _Can I kiss you?"_

Lou's eyes widened in fear. "W-What? _Eleanor_ , you can’t be-"

"Please? This is the only way!" She cried, leaning in closer to them. They started to panic.

"Eleanor, please stop! I have a boyfriend!"

"I don’t know what's happening! Please, Lou! Please!"

"N-No, I can’t-!"

Suddenly, her lips were on theirs. They desperately tried to get her off, but she only held them tighter against her.

When the kiss was over, Lou pulled away from her in fear. Eleanor was in shock too, perhaps realizing what she had done.

She spoke shakily, "L-Lou... I-"

_"What the hell!!?"_

Lou snatched their head up towards the voice. Harry was standing there, Danielle standing behind. "Harry, it’s not what you think-"

"Lou, why would you do this!? What’s wrong with you??"

"Please, Harry if you’d just let me explain-!"

"I can’t believe you. Get away from me. Lose my number! Don’t talk to me," Harry snapped, coldly.

"HARRY, WAIT!"

And then he was gone.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Forgive me


	19. End

_"Remember, call me when you're settled in!"_

"Alright, Mum. I will," Harry sighed, grinning in amusement. He repositioned the phone to balance it between his ear and his shoulder. He readjusted the strap of his carrier bag and pulled it up to his shoulder.

He heard her sniff on the other line. _"Oh, goodness. My little Harry. Going off to college already! I’m just so happy!"_

Harry rolled his eyes playfully. "Oh god, Mum. Don’t get sappy on me."

 _"I’m sorry, I’m just- I’m going to miss you so much!"_ Anne cried softly.

"Aw, now I’m gonna start crying," Harry smiled sadly. "I’ll call you later, okay?"

_"Okay. Talk to you later, sweetheart."_

_**Click**._

Harry sighed anxiously. His first day of college. High school had long passed. He graduated, he moved, and now he was off to university. How time flies.

True, he hadn’t really made any friends. All his mates from high school were long gone and happy. Niall and Zayn got together. Danielle and Eleanor. Liam and Cheryl.

But Harry was alone. Sometimes it was nice. However, other times he’d wish he’d never left it all behind.

But what could you do? Fate can be cruel sometimes. Life can be a chore. Eventually though, you just move on. Forgive and forget. Forgive and forget. Forgive and-

"Harry?" He heard a feminine voice ask from behind.

He whipped his s head around to see a brunette. She was short, but he could tell they were the same age. However, he didn’t recognize her.

“Harry! Oh my _god_. I-It’s _you_! It’s really you! Hazza, it’s me!” She squealed. She was kind of loud. Like a daughter who’s father just came home from the army.

She seemed so happy to see Harry. But who _was_ she?

“I’m sorry, do... do I know you?”

A wave of disappointment washed over her face. Her blue eyes flickered in pain. Such a pretty blue...

“You... You really don’t remember me?” She asked sadly.

He focused in on her features, trying to find some sort of familiarity.

Let’s see. She had medium brown hair that reached to her shoulders it was wavy in a natural way. Thin soft pink lips. They were pinched into an anticipated expression, parted slightly. Her nose was on the slightly bigger size, slightly wonky but in a cute way. Very prominent cheekbones. Whether it was makeup or natural it was hard to tell. She had very long eyelashes as well that really made her eyes stand out.

The girl was quite beautiful, but to be honest, she just seemed like any other attractive female.

But then he saw her eyes.

They were blue. But not just blue. Cyan like the sky, but also deep like the depths of the ocean. Periwinkle like a rainy day, but navy like the night. They told a story. The story of a lonely teenager who never really fit in. They were different, not like the others. Always bullied for their feminine personality and style. So they did their nails and makeup every morning. So they liked to wear skirts. So they used they/them pronouns. So what? That shouldn't have made them any less human...

At least that's what new kid, Harry Styles said the moment he laid his eyes on their perfect French tips.

“L-Lou?”

They gasped. “You... You remember me!? You remember me!” They smiled.

“Lou? Lou! Oh my god, _LOU!”_ Harry yelled, picking them up by their waist. He spun them around happily, laughing with joy. When he set them down, they had tears prickling in their eyes.

They hugged him tightly. “Harry, Harry I missed you so much,” they wept. “It’s been so long and I just- I missed you.”

Harry hugged them back. “I know, I know. I missed you too, I thought I’d never see you again,” he whispered between ragged breaths.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m so _fucking_ sorry,” they cried softly. Harry felt their tears on his shirt. “I didn’t mean it, I didn’t mean to kiss her, she kissed me and you just came in at the wrong time and I never got to explain myself and-!”

“Shh, shhh, sh,” he said, running his hands through their hair. It was soft and silky. “I know. I’m sorry. I’m the one who should be sorry.”

They pulled away, staring into his emerald eyes. “Don’t be. It’s fine! We’re together now. Everything’s gonna be okay,” they smiled.

“Yeah. Everything’s gonna be okay...”

********

“Mum! Where’s my coat!”

Lou sighed. “Darcy, again? I thought you just had it!” They turned to the staircase. “Baby, can you help Darcy find her coat?”

“Just a sec!” Harry yelled back, buttoning Danny’s shirt.

**_Ding. Dong._ **

“They’re here already?” Lou sighed, walking over to the door. They opened it.

“Li! Cheryl!” They exclaimed. “So happy to see you! It’s been so long,” they smiled, hugging them both. They cooed to the baby in Cheryl’s arms. “Aw, Bear you’re getting so big!”

“I know, he’s already walking,” Liam smiled brightly. The three walked into the kitchen to greet the other Styles parent.

The couple behind them approached. “Danielle! Eleanor!” They grinned. “How’s the newly married couple?”

“It’s great,” Danielle smiled. “Thanks for having us.” Eleanor nodded.

“Glad to have you,” they winked. The two got themselves situated in the living room, hands still intertwined.

Life was good. After high school graduation, Lou went through hormonal therapy to transition to a female, and now they finally felt at home. While they still used they/them pronouns, they finally felt more comfortable in their skin than ever. Once Harry and Lou found each other at college, they immediately hit it off once again, putting past differences behind them. And of course, when Harry proposed, of course they said yes. Now they had two beautiful children Darcy and Daniel, and a beautiful home in London. Everyone had been so accepting- even people who didn’t support them in the past. They reconnected with old friends, as well as picking up some new ones along the way. Bebe and Steve were some very close family friends.

Lou met Steve at a prom. He was DJing for the dances. Steve noticed during the slow dance after his set that Lou was alone. This was much after the conflict between them and Harry, so they went to prom single. Steve approached them and danced with him. He turned the night around from sullen and depressing to happy and fun- something Lou hadn’t really experienced in a while. Steve was straight, but the kind gesture really did a lot for Lou. They were close friends ever since.

Bebe was an interesting case. They weren’t really ever expecting to meet her- she kinda just fell out of the sky.

Literally. Lou was sitting in an orchard when Bebe fell out of a tree Dear Evan Hansen style. She didn’t mean to fall though, she just slipped because she was playing trumpet on one of the branches and wasn’t holding on correctly. Lou caught her. Seriously- they actually caught her.

Of course, this didn’t come without consequences. Lou broke a leg and their wrist. Bebe broke her arm. However, it was the start of a very strong friendship.

As for the others, everything turned out well. Danielle and Eleanor because high school sweethearts and were married shortly after college. They adopted a daughter named Freddie.

Zayn and Niall took a bit longer to get used to their relationship, but it all worked out. They were currently on their honeymoon after being freshly wed.

Cheryl and Liam were fated to get together- it was just a matter of time. With a little match making power from Lou, they went to prom together and were now married with their son, Bear, and another on the way.

Yeah, Lou was doing great. Harry too! He had finally found his soulmate. Since Lou had transitioned to a female, he still loves them just the same, as he was pansexual, and it didn’t matter to him.

When he found Lou at college, he felt like a missing part of him was finally filled. Lou made him happy. Lou made him laugh. Lou made him cry. Lou was everything that Harry wanted in a partner. So when he asked for they parents blessings, Johanna and Dan were ecstatic. They gave they permission and best regards right away. The wedding was magical, the ceremony was fantastic, and everything from that point on was like a dream.

All because of one extraordinary high school senior and one new kid. Together they could conquer the world together. Them together they do it.

_Them._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AND THATS THE END! MERRY HOLIDAYS EVERYONNNNNE


End file.
